Kozhikode, Aug 4 The mother of Allan Suhaib, the second accused in the controversial Pantheerankavu UAPA case, has alleged that the Kerala Police is harassing her son, even as the trial reaches its final stage in the NIA Court in Kochi.
Fazal and Allan Suhaib, students of journalism and law respectively, were arrested in November 2019 in Kozhikode under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Both were active members of CPI(M)'s branch committee.
They were charged with supporting Maoist groups -- banned organisations classified as terrorist entities.
Following prolonged incarceration, the two were granted bail. However, the Kerala High Court later cancelled Fazal’s bail, while Suhaib's bail remains intact. The trial is currently in its concluding phase.
Speaking to reporters, Suhaib’s mother, Sabitha Sekhar, said the police are subjecting her son to continued harassment.
“My son has to stay in Kochi because the trial is ongoing, while we live in Kozhikode. The police are now putting pressure on people who offer him accommodation,” she said.
“They are trying to influence landlords and even circulating his photo on social media. This is unbearable,” Sabitha added.
The arrest of the two youths had sparked a political controversy in 2019, especially after the CPI(M) leadership distanced itself from them, despite family members insisting they were party members.
The controversy deepened when Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan declared in the Assembly that both were Maoist activists.
The National Investigation Agency later took over the case, citing materials seized from the accused -- such as books, pamphlets, placards, and diary entries -- as evidence of their alleged Maoist links.
The issue had also resonated in the state Assembly, with the Congress-led UDF demanding that the Chief Minister approach Union Home Minister Amit Shah to seek the withdrawal of UAPA charges against the duo.
Disclaimer: This post has been auto-published from an agency feed without any modifications to the text and has not been reviewed by an editor