Prisons with terror accused in Kerala put on high alert

 Prisons in Kerala where accused in different terror related cases are lodged have been put on high alert.

The move came in the backdrop of the ruckus created by accused of the Kashmir terrorist recruitment and Kozhikkode blast cases at Viyyur Central Jail on January 7 night.  The accused were moved to Viyyur from Ernakulam jail following the direction of the Director-General of Police. But eleven terror suspects when brought to Viyyur refused to get down from police vehicle for half an hour and then raised religious slogans inside the jail. Viyyur jail superintendent informed the NIA court on Monday in Ernakulam that there is possibility of terror attack on jails to free suspects. He is learnt to have informed the court that prisons close to sea coast are not safe enough to lodge terror suspects and they need to be kept in prisons away from the sea coast.

The NIA had found that some youths from northern districts in Kerala were recruited by the Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) from 2006 to carry out anti-national activities in Jammu and Kashmir. It arrested several accused in the case and filed the final charge sheet in the NIA court last year.

Eleven accused, including Thadiyantavida Nazeer, suspected LeT operative, were recently remanded by the NIA court in the case. When brought to Viyyur following security reasons, the suspects told jail authorities that they do not want to be kept at Viyyur jail and they also refused to undergo body checks. Later, when authorities persuaded them to get down they demanded that they be put in cells they choose. That was also denied and they were put in different cells, said jail sources.  Meanwhile, some of the accused have inflicted injuries on themselves by banging their heads on iron bars and doors of the jail cells.  According to jail authorities the ploy seemed to be to raise the accusation that they were attacked inside jail and later demand shifting to other jails. Currently Viyyur jail authorities have put them in different cells to avoid any mischiefs by the accused.