Thiruvananthapuram: Various groups staged protests in the State capital on Wednesday over the recent demise of a student from Kerala Veterinary University in Wayanad district. Tensions escalated as clashes erupted between protesters and police at the main gate of the state Secretariat.
Members of the Congress, along with its youth and women's wings, as well as the student unit of the IUML and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), gathered at the Secretariat and blockaded the gate facing MG Road.
Initially, activists from IUML's student wing, the Muslim Students Federation (MSF), staged protests near the barricades in front of the Secretariat, subsequently obstructing half of MG Road. The situation intensified as clashes broke out between the demonstrators and deployed police personnel.
Supporters from the Youth Congress, Mahila Congress, and AAP soon joined the fray, with many female protesters chanting "go back" slogans at the police.
Despite police attempts to disperse the crowd using water cannons and batons, the protests persisted. Several women were also observed scaling the barricades at the main gate of the Secretariat.
(With PTI inputs.)
