The first day of the 16th session of the Kerala Assembly on Monday saw a protest and walkout by the opposition Congress after the Speaker refused to allow notice for an adjournment motion, seeking a CBI probe into the sexual assault and murder of two minor siblings at Palakkad in 2017.
Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan adjourned proceedings after the Opposition UDF MLAs trooped to the well of the house, demanding a CBI probe into the matter.
A POCSO Court in Palakkad on October 25 ordered release of three accused in the rape and murder of the sisters, aged 13 and nine, at Walayar town in Palakkad district.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan,who replied to the notice moved by Congress MLA from Palakkad, Shafi Parambil, dismissed the charge that the enquiry into the case was botched up and said his government would appeal against the court order.
Terming it as an unfortunate incident, the Chief Minister said the accused in the case were not convicted.
The government, he said, would seriously consider the matter and find out whether the case failed due to a weak prosecution or lapses in the police enquiry.
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"The death of the two children has affected the conscience of society. The government wants to provide justice to those kids, though they are no more.
We are always with the victims. There is no politics in it. We will take action.We will seriously consider and decide if a re-investigation or a probe by CBI should be done in the case," Vijayan said.
He also informed the house that the Sub Inspector who was dealing with the case had been suspended.
Dissatisfied with his reply, the opposition members raised slogans and entered the well of the house.
Some of them even climbed atop the Speaker's dias, seeking leave for the adjournment motion.
The Speaker then adjourned the House after completing the listed business without any discussion.
The Opposition leaders later met mediapersons and alleged that the government was shielding the accused.
"In this case, the CPI(M) is shielding the accused.That's why we are demanding a CBI enquiry. Investigation by Kerala police will not be of any help to trace the real culprits," Opposition Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala said.
He said the party protested in the house as the Chief Minister was not ready for a CBI probe.
"The advocate of the accused has been appointed as the chairman of the district Child Welfare Committee (CWC).
The criteria for appointing the chairman and members of the CWC have been totally ignored," Chennithala said.
He also said the Congress and its allies, including the Indian Union Muslim League, would intensify protests in the coming days.
"Today, the Youth Congress and Youth League started protests and took out a march. The Chief Minister was in a defensive mode. I don't know why he is shielding the culprits," Chennithala said.
The two girls were found hanging in their houses at Attappalam in Walayar, the elder one on January 13 2017 and her younger sister on March 4 that year.
The post-mortem report revealed that they were subjected to sexual assault.
The accused, V Madhu (27), M Madhu (27) and Shibu (43) were acquitted for lack of evidence.
Another accused Pradeep Kumar was also acquitted earlier for lack of evidence.
A minor (17 years) is one of the remaining accused and the juvenile court will consider his case on November 15.