As a precautionary measure to prevent untoward incidents after the judgment in the Ayodhya case is pronounced, Kasaragod District Collector has given orders to close down liquor shops in the district till further notice. The order was put out at 9.30 am on Saturday, an hour before the Ayodhya dispute case verdict commenced.
Kasaragod District Collector D Sajith Babu has also stated that firecrackers shops in the district will also remain closed till further notice. The move is likely to prevent people from celebrating the Supreme Court verdict on Ayodhya dispute case, whatever the judgment is.
Kasaragod is the northernmost district of Kerala sharing borders with Karnataka, and is one of the regions of the state that is under high surveillance. As per reports, prohibitory orders have been put in force in Manjeshwaram, Kumbala, Kasaragod, Chendera and Hosdurg police station limits. The two-day prohibitory orders will be in place till Monday noon.
Earlier, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had stated that whatever the Ayodhya case judgment might be, people should react peacefully. He had also stated that when Babri Masjid was demolished, Kerala’s reaction was something that can be a role model.
Various political leaders in the state, including Congress’s Ramesh Chennithala and BJP’s Kummanam Rajasekharan, have told that people should treat the judgment peacefully whatever it might uphold.
The police force in Kerala are also on high alert as in other states. Kerala Police have also given directions to people to refrain from posting or circulating messages inciting communal disharmony. They have started a 24-hour surveillance in various social media platforms. It has also been warned that non-bailable charges will be slapped on those who circulate or write such posts on social media.
The final verdict in the 20-year-old Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid dispute was pronounced by the five-judge constitution bench of the Supreme Court headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi.
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