Thousands of people joined hands to form a 700-km, Kerala-wide Human Chain organized by the CPI(M)-led ruling lDF in order to protest against the lack of Central steps to alleviate the hardships being faced by the people due to currency demonetisation and an alleged bid by the Sangh Pariwar to destroy the cooperative movement in the State.
Marxist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stood as the first link of the Human Chain at its starting point at the gates of the Raj Bhavan in Thiruvananthapuram, the southernmost district of the State, to Kasaragod town, headquarters of the northernmost district. Human chains were formed by lDF workers along almost all roads in the interior areas of the State as well.
State CPI(M) secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, who was the second link in the chain, claimed that over 8,00,000 people had joined hands for the programme, which marked a crucial phase in the protests that had been going on in the State for the past several weeks. Revenue Minister E Chandrasekharan of the CPI stood as the last link of the Human Chain in Kasaragod.
“Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he abandoned his family for the sake of the country. That family has been saved but the country has been pushed into hardships by him. Modi has made cashless not the economy but the people,” said nonagenarian Marxist leader VS Achuthanandan, who was the third link in the Human Chain.
Ministers and senior leaders of the left led the Human Chain at important points in various districts. CPI(M) Politbureau member MA Baby, Culture Minister AK Balan, Finance Minister TM Thomas Isaac, Ports Minister Kadannappally Ramachandran and Marxist MP P Karunakaran led the protest at Kochi, Palakkad, Kozhikode, Kannur and Kasaragod respectively.
“This is not the first time that the left is organizing a human chain. But such huge people’s participation had not been seen in the earlier programmes. The turnout of people in such large numbers for this Human Chain establishes our stand that demonetization has affected ordinary people in all regions,” said Kodiyeri Balakrishnan.