Kerala Congress MPs allege manhandled by Delhi Police during protest against SilverLine project

A scuffle breaks out between Delhi Police personnel and Kerala Congress MPs on Thursday while the latter were protesting at Vijay Chowk against SilverLine project.

There was a chaotic situation outside the Parliament when all the Congress MPs from Kerala were stopped by Delhi Police during a protest march.

MPs claimed that they were taking out a protest march from Vijay Chowk to Parliament against Silver Line Rail Project when they were stopped by police. They also alleged that they were beaten up by the Delhi Police.

Kodukunnil Suresh, Dean Kuriakose and VK Sreekandan claimed that they were manhandled by the police.

A police officer handling the situation at the spot told that there was some confusion over the identity of the people trying to cross over the police barrier.

The police staff on duty stopped them but later they were allowed to go. There was some confusion that was immediately addressed and resolved.

However, Delhi Police denied the manhandling charge. The police said that MPs first raised slogans near Vijay Chowk and then started moving towards Parliament.

"Because of the protest, they were stopped and when they told their identity we let them go. No manhandling was done," the police said.

Speaking to ANI, Congress leader KC Venugopal said that the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will be together in this project and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will give consent.

"We are seeking the PM to see the concern of the people of Kerala and to try to stop the CM of Kerala. There's a feeling that CPI(M) and BJP will be together in this project and that the PM will give consent," said Venugopal.

The Congress leader further said that the K-Silver line project proposed by the Kerala government is anti-people.

"Most people are in fear of eviction. Kerala is an economically fragile state... This is not an economically viable project. Now Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is going to meet the PM to get a sanction," he added.

The SilverLine project was initiated by the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government in 2019. The expected cost of the project is around Rs 65,000 crore.

The 529-km SilverLine railway project will link Thiruvananthapuram in the south to Kasaragod in north Kerala, covering 11 districts through 11 stations. The journey between two stations is expected to take four hours, whereas it currently takes 12 hours to reach from one end to another.

( With inputs from ANI )

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