Uproar in Kerala Assembly after UDF accuses SFI of violence; CM defends it

The Kerala assembly witnessed an uproar on Thursday as the opposition Congress accused the SFI of indulging in criminal activities in state campuses, prompting Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to defend the Left student outfit and counter-allege atrocities by the Congress-backed KSU.

The Congress-led UDF alleged that the CM and CPI(M) were providing political patronage to its student outfit -- Students Federation of India (SFI) -- which they claimed was responsible for violent and criminal activities in university campuses and beyond, across the state.

The allegation was made by the opposition in the notice moved by several UDF MLAs, including M Vincent, seeking adjournment of the House proceedings to discuss the alleged beating up of a leader of the Kerala Students Union (KSU), the student wing of the Congress, by the SFI on the University of Kerala campus here.

The opposition's motion was rejected by Vijayan who said that the police have registered cases in connection with the ...