Kochi, Apr 4 (PTI) Attaching the property of a Dalit family by an urban cooperative bank in Muvattupuzha near here has created a row in Kerala with an MLA alleging that the bank evicted girls from the house while their parents were away.

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The incident grabbed media attention after the Muvattupuzha MLA Mathew Kuzhalanadan (Congress) protested against the eviction by breaking open the doors of the house that were sealed two days ago by the bank for defaulting on loan payment.

Following this, the State government sought a report from the bank. Cooperation Minister V N Vasavan said the stand of the government was no one should be evicted unless another shelter for them was identified.

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"The stand of the Leftist government is that no one should be evicted and rendered shelterless. The process of eviction can take place once a shelter for the family is identified. I came to know that the bank has been asked to hand over the key to the family. We have asked for a report from the bank," Vasavan told reporters.

On April 2, the bank officials, along with the local police, sealed the house of Ajeesh and evicted his two daughters who were there at that time.

The officials said they attached the property based on a court directive.

Ajeesh, a heart patient, and his wife were at a hospital at that time for treatment.

MLA Kuzhalanadan, in a video uploaded onto a social media platform, said "It doesn't matter which court passed the order but it was unacceptable to throw two children out of their house." "How can they evict two minor children when their parents are not home? Even though they (bank officials) may have the court order, they could have shown some humaness," Kuzhalanadan said.

After seeing the plight of the children, the locals informed Kuzhalanadan who on Saturday night broke into the house and let the children in.

On Sunday, he wrote a letter to the bank offering to clear the debts of Ajeesh, but, on Monday, the CITU members in the bank collected the amount and paid over one-and-a-half lakh rupees which Ajeesh took around five years ago.

But, Ajeesh rejected the offer.

"What's the point in helping me now. I went to the bank umpteen times seeking help. No one bothered. Now, they have humiliated me. I don't want their help," Ajeesh told the reporters. The bank officials stated that they gave Ajeesh enough opportunities to clear the debts, yet he did not. So, the officials said they went to court and it ordered the eviction.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)