Youth Congress workers perform "purification ceremony" at sit-in protest spot of CPI Dalit MLA
Thrissur (Kerala), Jul 28: An alleged symbolic 'purification ceremony' conducted by some Youth Congress workers in protest against a stir by a Dalit CPI MLA has triggered a controversy in Kerala with the lawmaker dubbing it 'casteist' and lodging a police complaint.
State Ministers also came down on the Youth Congress workers and said such acts cannot be accepted.
The incident took place at Cherppu near here Saturday after Nattika MLA Geetha Gopi staged a sit-in in front of the a Public Works Department engineer's office protesting against the "poor condition" of a road in the locality.
In a counter-protest, the Youth Congress activists staged a march against the MLA, alleging her protest was an act to 'befool' the people.
They also sprinkled cow dung-mixed water at the place, where she had staged the sit-in, considered a symbolic purification ceremony.
The MLA alleged the ceremony was casteist and filed a complaint with the police Sunday.
Kerala Cultural Minister A K Balan lashed out at the Youth Congress activists and alleged such so-called purification ceremony was usually seen in north India.
"Such acts are normally seen in north India. It cannot be accepted," Balan told reporters.
Health Minister K K Shylaja also condemned the incident and said the act against the MLA showed the "political culture" of the protesters.
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US VP JD Vance says Lebanon not part of ceasefire, calls it ‘misunderstanding’
Budapest/Washington: US Vice President J D Vance has said that Lebanon was never included in the ceasefire understanding with Iran, describing the confusion as a “legitimate misunderstanding”.
Speaking to reporters before departing from Hungary, Vance said, “I think the Iranians thought that the ceasefire included Lebanon and it just didn’t. We never made that promise.”
He stressed that the United States had not included Lebanon in the scope of the ceasefire at any stage.
His remarks come amid continued Israeli strikes in Lebanon, where more than 200 people were reported killed, even as ceasefire talks between Iran and the US move forward.
Vance said Israel had “offered … to check themselves a little bit in Lebanon because they want to make sure that our negotiation is successful”.
He warned that if Iran allows the situation in Lebanon to affect the negotiations, it could derail the talks.
“If Iran wants to let this negotiation fall apart in a conflict where they were getting hammered over Lebanon, which has nothing to do with them and which the United States never once said was part of the ceasefire, that’s ultimately their choice,” he said.
