Adoor co-op bank row: Congress stages protest

Kottayam: Congress on Tuesday staged a protest march against alleged corruption at Adoor Service Cooperative Bank, whose president Ponthamara Pillai, a CPM member, resigned a day earlier. The march, taken out to the Adoor taluk cooperative office, was held to demand a comprehensive investigation into the bank's irregularities. Police attempted to stop the march at the gate below the Adoor revenue tower, but the protesters proceeded. Police stopped them again on the first floor, leading to a scuffle and verbal altercation between the police and the protesters. Amid this, some protesters managed to reach the cooperative office on the fourth floor, where the police prevented them from entering. Subsequently, discussions were held with the assistant registrar under the leadership of DCC general secretary Ezhumkulam Aju, municipal councillor Shibu Chirakkarott and others. The assistant registrar assured those present at the meeting that further investigations related to the allegations would be conducted.