Kerala: Arrested YouTuber assaulted outside Adoor police station; case registered

Pathanamthitta (Kerala), Jul 13 (PTI) Police have registered a case after a YouTuber was allegedly assaulted by around 20 persons outside the Adoor station, officials said on Monday. The YouTuber had been arrested for allegedly posting defamatory content on social media against Congress district panchayat member Sreena Devi Kunjamma. The accused, Rajan Joseph, was arrested on Saturday night in connection with allegedly defamatory videos targeting Kunjamma, who was formerly a CPI leader. The incident occurred when Joseph was brought to the police station following his arrest. According to police, a group of around 20 unidentified persons surrounded Joseph as he was being escorted out of the police vehicle and allegedly assaulted him. Police intervened and, after considerable effort, rescued the accused from the crowd and shifted him inside the station. Officials said some police personnel also sustained injuries while trying to protect the accused and restore order. Police said efforts were on to identify those involved and suspected that they were associated with the Youth Congress. Kunjamma, on whose complaint Joseph was arrested, told reporters on Monday that those who make such videos should expect a public reaction. "If such a video has been made, it is only natural that if such people arrive in Adoor, they might get beaten up. It is natural," she said. "Whoever is behind it, if they got beaten up, I understand it as the consequence of their own actions," she added. Refuting allegations that Youth Congress or KSU workers were behind the assault, Kunjamma said such claims were unfair. Kunjamma alleged that since September last year, Joseph and another YouTuber, Sibi, had uploaded around 25 videos targeting her. "They uploaded more than 20 to 25 videos, each lasting 10 to 15 minutes, in which they carried out character assassination throughout. They have done everything that fits both the broad and narrow definitions of insulting the modesty of a woman," she alleged. She said the first video targeting her was uploaded when she was with the CPI after she raised corruption allegations against a party leader. She also said she had never met Joseph before his arrest. "The first time I saw him in person was the other night at the Adoor station after he was arrested and placed in the lock-up. He was sitting on the floor of the lock-up. That was the first time in my life I saw him. He may be taking such positions purely for income or perhaps due to some political animosity," she said. Kunjamma sought the CPI(M)'s stand on the issue, alleging that the accused had similarly targeted CPI(M) leaders, including P P Divya in Kannur, and that a case had been registered there. She alleged that the accused had published a highly derogatory video concerning CPI(M) leaders Mohammed Riyas and Elamaram Kareem. "I want the state and local leadership of the CPI(M) to clarify their stand regarding these YouTubers because the secretary of the CPI(M) Adoor Town Local Committee and a member of the CPI(M) Adoor Area Committee went to the Adoor station on Sunday to secure the accused's release on bail," she alleged. PTI TBA SSK