Battle erupts after three-day lull

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: If the capital city was peaceful, or rather lay deserted, for the past three days owing to two hartals with a holiday squeezed in between, on Tuesday, the situation presented a stark contrast, with stun grenades, water cannons and bricks ruling the streets.

 The city turned into a battleground yet again, following a violent clash between activists of the Students Federation of India (SFI), the student outfit of the CPM, and the police. The clash occurred during a demonstration taken out by the SFI activists to the state’s administrative headquarters, the Secretariat, on Tuesday morning in protest against the alleged police atrocities led by Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajpal Meena on students during their agitation against petrol price rise last Friday.