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Members of various political groups, including the Muslim Students Federation, the All India Mahila Congress and the Indian Youth Congress protested near the Secretariat in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
The police use water cannons to disperse the crowd as they attempt to break through the barricades. The groups are protesting over the death of JS Sidhharth, a student in Govt. Veterinary College, Pookkode, in Wayanad, who was found hanging inside his college hostel on February 18. Earlier on Tuesday, the Kerala Students Union (KSU) staged a protest march to the Secretariat as part of a statewide bandh. The protestors are demanding a CBI inquiry into the death. Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on March 1 suspended the Vice Chancellor of the Kerala Veterinary and Animal Sciences University, Dr MR Saseendranath in connection with the death of a second-year student at the university. The Governor, in the order of suspension, stated that the report provided by the Vice Chancellor, M R Saseendranath, clearly demonstrated a severe negligence of duty on his part during the events that led to the death of 20-year-old Sidhharth on February 18. The Governor also expressed concern over the Vice Chancellor's negligence and has ordered a judicial probe into the incident. The report highlights the victim's stomach being empty, suggesting a horrifying denial of food and drink for over 36 hours. Furthermore, the governor shed light on the alleged involvement of student organisations, specifically the SFI (Students Federation of India), which reportedly converted a hostel into its headquarters for various activities. He also raised questions about the silence prevailing for almost three days and criticised the university for not reporting the matter to the chancellor until recently. On March 1, T Jayaprakash, the father of the veterinary student, alleged that the death of his son (Siddharth) seemed to be a "murder 'sponsored' by the leaders and workers of the SFI." (ANI)
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