Wayanad Landslide Survivors Allege Worm-Infested Food Kits Distributed; Protest Erupts (image-twitter/ShashiTharoor)

Wayanad, Kerala: The survivors of the Chooralmala-Mundakkai landslides in Wayanad district alleged on Thursday that worm-infested food kits were distributed by the Meppadi Gram Panchayat which had led to a violent protest. The Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) workers and the affected family members stormed into the Panchayat office on Thursday morning.

The Meppadi Panchayat is under the governance of the Congress-led UDF. Tension escalated in the Panchayat office when DYFI workers attempted to force their way into the President’s office. The DYFI activists had staged a sit-in protest, by displaying the contaminated rice in front of the panchayat office.

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The DYFI leaders during the protest claimed that the rice and other provisions distributed in the kit were inedible. The ones who received the kit had cited worms and insects in rice, sooji rava, and other items.

The DYFI workers had alleged that they were manhandled by the members of the local body governed by the Congress-led UDF. However, the UDF members claimed that the protestors attempted to force their way into the panchayat president’s office and made casteist remarks against him.

According to the Panchayat authorities, five people were injured, including the Panchayat president, K Babu and four members, who have been admitted to a hospital.

However, the panchayat authorities have claimed that they have only supplied the food kits donated by the Revenue Department and other charitable organizations.

“We have been supplying the food kits for the past three months without any issues. The alleged kits were supplied by the District Collectorate, and the complaint was made on October 29. We suspect there is a mystery behind this incident, which came to light during the by-poll,” said a panchayat member.

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He also mentioned that due to the election protocols, local representatives were restricted from entering storage areas to inspect food quality.
The landslide struck the village on July 30 causing devastating destruction mainly to three villages- Punchirimattam, Chooralmala, and Mundakkai along with the sections of Attamala in Wayanad.