ROUND 1 TO PINARAYI

KERALA/ VIZHINJAM PORT PROTESTS

- Jeemon Jacob

In the end, it was Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who came up trumps. The Latin Catholic church had led a 138-day protest by the fisherfolk against the Vizhinjam International Seaport Ltd, the Rs 7,525 crore deepwater container transhipment port project by the Adani Group, raising issues like sea erosion (through dredging for the port) affecting livelihoods and destroying homes of the fishing community, as well as compensation for those displaced. However, an orgy of violence on November 27 made their position untenable, and after meeting the CM on December 6, the Vizhinjam Protest Council (VPC) led by the clergy announced a provisional cessation of fire. Monsignor Eugine Pereira, general convenor of the VPC, later told reporters, “We are calling off the protests for now. The government has agreed to set up a monitoring committee to evaluate the impact of the shrinking coastal zone in the region.”

For Pinarayi, the Latin church’s retreat comes at an opportune moment, with his government already under attack on several fronts. The political victory boosts his strongman image and deflates the opposition charge that he was going soft on the rioters due to the “pressure politics of religious groups”.