Polls push Sabarimala to the forefront

The BJP and the Congress are trying their best to rake up the issue of women entering Sabarimala temple and the State Government’s intervention as a poll plank against the Government, yet again. Sabarimala and faith was the major election weapon for both the BJP and Congress during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls also.

Thiruvananthapuram: With the BJP all set for the poll battle lining up prominent personalities in the front, to match the LDF and the UDF line up, Kerala has become a centre stage for heated discussions and arguments. Fresh claims of secret pacts between parties have surfaced and Sabarimala is rekindled by the BJP and the Congress as a weapon against the Left.

The BJP and the Congress are trying their best to rake up the issue of Sabarimala women entry and the State Government’s intervention as a poll plank against the Government, yet again. Sabarimala and faith was the major election weapon for both the BJP and Congress during the 2019 Lok Sabha polls also.

BJP state president K Surendran contesting from two seats and BJP national senior leader and Kazhakkoottam candidate Shobha Surendran started their poll campaign by bringing up Sabarimala women entry as their poll plank. Surendran said, he is contesting from Manjeshwaram in Kasaragod and Konni constituency - which includes Sabarimala - in Pathanamthitta district with a hope of becoming victorious. Shobha Surendran said she aims at winning against Devaswom Minister Kadakampally Surendran.

CPM national general secretary Sitaram Yechury clarified that the party has not wavered from its stand on Sabarimala women entry. This statement from Yechury has been taken up by the BJP and Congress as another ammunition against the CPM in Kerala. Yechury had denounced Kadakampally Surendran’s statement that the Government did a folly in Sabarimala matter. Devaswom Minister Kadakampally is to contest from Kazhakkoottam.

K Surendran has demanded that as the CPM’s national leadership has revealed the party’s stand on Sabarimala, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan must also reveal his stand on Sabarimala.

Congress leaders also repeat that faith would be a topic of discussion during this election also. Going by the indications, the BJP and the UDF would cling on to ‘faith’ for their election campaigns against the ruling Left, until polls.

Meanwhile, RSS ideologue R Balashankar’s allegation that the BJP in Kerala is in a tacit pact with the CPM has left the BJP red-faced. It has led to serious discussions within the BJP in Kerala. Balashankar is said to have dealt a blow to the BJP as he was denied candidature in Chengannur.

Balashankar alleged that while the BJP would help CPM win Chengannur and Aranmula, the CPM would in turn help the BJP win Konni. If Balashankar revealed about the CPM-BJP deal, Nemom MLA and BJP leader O Rajagopal said that the Congress, BJP and the Muslim League have helped each other in the elections. Rajagopal said the understanding the BJP had with Congress and the Indian Union of Muslim League (IUML) in Northern Kerala has benefitted the BJP.

Discussions in the political arena on Wednesday was around the alleged ‘discreet understandings’ between the political parties, as Rajagopal and Balashankar claimed on such secret pacts between the parties. However, RSS and the BJP have denounced Balashankar’s statements and denied all such allegations on secret pacts.

The RSS leadership said the party did not know about the BJP thinking of allotting a ticket to Balashankar. The RSS and the BJP denouncing Balashankar, who was the editor of ‘Organiser’, right away and refuting his statements is sure to be a discussion within the RSS and the BJP camps.

It is for sure that the political parties would raise allegations and counter-allegations on the secret pacts during the campaigns in Nemom and Malampuzha in the coming days. Amid all these, Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala has come up with allegations that fake votes have been added in all constituencies in Kerala. The Election Commission has stated that it would probe the allegations made.