Hartal supporter held for obstructing cancer patient on way to hospital

Kottayam: A hartal supporter was arrested and remanded in judicial custody for stopping a cancer patient and his wife from heading to a hospital in Thiruvalla on Wednesday. The arrested man, Ajimon, 50, of Chumathra, Thiruvalla, is a leader of Cherama Sambava Development Society. Though the couple pleaded with Ajimon to let them go, hartal supporters led by the accused did not heed, said an officer with Thiruvalla police.Ajimon was booked under sections including attempt to commit culpable homicide (BNS 110). He was also booked under BNS 126(2) for wrongful restraint and BNS 351(2) for criminal intimidation.The FIR states that the accused threatened the patient who arrived at the KSRTC bus stand in Thiruvalla around 7.30am on Tuesday. The victim, named Siju, 48, a resident of Kalady near Ernakulam, was going to a hospital for treatment. The accused stopped him and threatened, him saying, "We announced the strike 10 days ago, so it's your fault if you did not plan accordingly. Or else you should have reached the hospital and stayed there on Monday itself. We don't want to know what illness you have. You are intentionally trying to sabotage the hartal," he said. The accused acted in a way that caused a threat to the life of the complainant by delaying him from seeking necessary medical treatment, said the FIR.Police said that the hartal supporters also raised baseless allegations against them, calling them ‘white police' who try to sabotage their hartal. Police took the couple to the hospital in Kozhenchery in their vehicle.The accused was produced in the court, which remanded him in judicial custody.