_Ravada A Chandrasekhar officially assumed charge as the new State Police Chief of Kerala on Tuesday, succeeding Shaik Darvesh Saheb, who retired on Monday. Chandrasekhar becomes the 41st Police Chief of the state.
Arriving in Thiruvananthapuram from New Delhi earlier in the day, he received the ceremonial baton from Additional Director General of Police H Venkatesh, who held interim charge following Saheb’s retirement. The handover took place at the State Police Headquarters in the capital.
However, his first day in office was marked by a dramatic interruption during his press conference. A man posing as a journalist disrupted the event, demanding justice for alleged harassment during his tenure in the police force.
The man, later identified as Basheer, a former Sub-Inspector at Kannavam Police Station in Kannur, confronted the new DGP with emotional appeals regarding a long-pending case. “I served for 30 years but never received justice,” he declared, before being escorted out by police personnel.
The Kerala government had appointed Ravada A Chandrasekhar, then on central deputation, as the new Director General of Police (DGP) on Monday.
Addressing the media after taking charge, Chandrasekhar stated that the police force would work proactively to maintain law and order. He emphasized intensifying ongoing anti-drug operations and promoting community involvement.
“We will focus on community participation and take strong action against the perpetrators. The impact of drugs is visible across all sections—schools, colleges, and among the youth,” he said. He added that the department would remain vigilant and uncompromising in this regard.
However, his appointment was not without controversy, largely due to his association with the Koothuparamba firing of 1994, an incident that remains etched in the political memory of Kerala.
On November 25, 1994—just two days after his transfer from Hyderabad—Chandrasekhar, newly appointed as Assistant Superintendent of Police in Kannur, oversaw a police operation that turned deadly.
The incident occurred when thousands of Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) activists blocked the convoy of Cooperation and Ports Minister MV Raghavan, protesting the then-UDF government’s self-financing education policy. Raghavan, once a senior CPI(M) leader, had later split from the party.
When tear gas and lathi-charge failed to disperse the crowd, the police opened fire in two rounds. Five DYFI activists—K.K. Rajeevan, K.V. Roshan, Madhu, Shibulal, and Babu—were killed, and several others seriously injured. DYFI member Pushpan, who was bedridden following the incident, passed away last year. In 2012, the Kerala High Court quashed all cases against the police personnel involved, including Chandrasekhar.
Given this background, Chandrasekhar’s elevation to the top post under a CPI(M)-led LDF government is seen as highly ironic by many, especially within the party’s own ranks.
Senior CPI(M) leader P Jayarajan openly expressed displeasure over the appointment, reminding the public that both the CPI(M) and the DYFI had strongly opposed Chandrasekhar in the past. “He was an accused in the Koothuparamba firing,” Jayarajan said.
However, party state secretary M.V. Govindan and Central Committee member EP Jayarajan downplayed the controversy, saying those events belong to the past. CPI(M)’s Kannur district secretary K.K. Ragesh also supported the appointment, stating that Chandrasekhar had no prior familiarity with the region when he was posted there and played no part in any “conspiracy.”
Interestingly, Chandrasekhar’s first official program as State Police Chief will be in Kannur, a Left bastion and politically sensitive district with a history steeped in blood and ideological martyrdom.
Meanwhile, AICC General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal alleged that Chandrasekhar’s appointment was the result of a political compromise between the CPI(M) in Kerala and the Central government. He questioned why senior officers like Yogesh Gupta and Nitin Agarwal were overlooked in favour of Chandrasekhar and accused the CPI(M) of “forgetting its own martyrs.”
Though the Koothuparamba firing remains an emotionally charged episode in the CPI(M)’s history, the party has since shifted its stance, later embracing self-financing colleges and even promoting private universities. Still, many party leaders and cadres did not expect Chandrasekhar—long associated with that dark chapter—to be appointed to the state’s highest policing post.
As Ravada Chandrasekhar steps into his new role, the shadows of Koothuparamba continue to linger in the minds of CPI(M) supporters and raise complex questions about political pragmatism, justice, and memory.