Palakkad (Keralam) | UDF leaders staged a day-long hunger strike here on Wednesday, the Thiruvonam day, protesting the Railway Board's decision to transfer the Mangaluru area, including Ullal, from the Palakkad Division of Southern Railway to the Mysuru Division of South Western Railway from October 1.
UDF MPs K Sudhakaran,V K Sreekandan, M K Raghavan, E T Mohammed Basheer, Benny Behanan, Dean Kuriakose, Shafi Parambil and Rajmohan Unnithan were among those who took part in the hunger strike.
State ministers Sunny Joseph and K A Thulasi, Palakkad MLA Ramesh Pisharody and UDF local body representatives also were among those who took part in the agitation held in front of the Palakkad divisional railway manager's (DRM) office here.
The protesters demanded immediate withdrawal of the Railway Board's decision to shift the Mangaluru area from the Palakkad railway division.
KPCC president and state minister Sunny Joseph, who inaugurated the satyagraha, alleged that the Centre had taken the decision "under the cover of darkness" soon after the Parliament session, describing it as a "grave betrayal" of the people of Keralam.
"There is no justification for this act. The shifting of Mangaluru from the Palakkad division was unnecessary. Without informing the state government or people's representatives here, the Railway Ministry took the decision in the middle of the night like a thief," Joseph said.
Drawing an analogy from the Onam mythology, Joseph alleged that the Centre was trying to push Keralam down, just as mythical King Mahabali was pushed into the netherworld.
"The Centre is trying to undermine Keralam in a manner that would adversely affect the state's development projects," he alleged.
Senior IUML leader and MP E T Mohammed Basheer, speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the agitation, alleged that the Centre was "taking revenge" against Keralam.
"This is the cruelest thing a Union government can do," he said.
State Minister Thulasi said it was her first Onam after assuming office and that, as a people's representative from the district, she was taking part in the protest to express solidarity against what she termed the Centre's irresponsible action.
UDF MP Sreekandan alleged, "The Centre has been continuously neglecting Keralam. Even though this was not an urgent matter, such a decision was taken in the middle of the night without informing the Keralam government or the people's representatives."
The satyagraha came two days after Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan urged Prime Minister Narendra Modi to put on hold the Railway Board's decision and reconsider it after consultations with the state government and other stakeholders.
In a letter to Modi, Satheesan had said the decision had caused "serious concern" in Keralam as it was taken without any prior consultation with the state government despite having significant and long-term implications for railway infrastructure and development, particularly in northern Keralam.
The chief minister had also pointed out that Mangaluru had been an integral part of the Palakkad Division for decades and said the proposed transfer would take away not only Mangaluru Central and Mangaluru Junction but also important railway infrastructure linked to the Mangaluru port region, including Panambur.
