BJP ADMITS TO ITS PLOY IN KERALA
Kerala BJP chief ’s indiscreet remark – that Sabarimala has provided them with a golden opportunity – has ignited yet another row, even as the temple was opened to devotees after being shut for several weeks.
In the video, Kerala BJP president PS Sreedharan Pillai is heard telling party workers that ‘‘Sabarimala issue is a golden opportunity for us" and that the agitation was "BJP's agenda".
Pillai can also be heard saying the head priest called him and was worried about committing contempt of court, if he closed down the shrine to keep out the women. The BJP unit chief, in turn, is heard saying he reassured the priest that in a contempt case, he would not be alone; tens of thousands of people will be with him.
The video surfaced just before the temple opened on Monday under heavy security that included thousands of commandos and a contingent of policewomen above 50.
"I told him you are not alone. If a contempt of court case is registered, then it will be against us, first. Then,
there will be tens of thousands of people with him. When I told him that, he said that that my assurance was enough for him. And he took decision that day, which later put the state government and the police on the back foot," the BJP leader is heard telling party men.
Pillai further said it was "destiny" that he and the priest were both part of the contempt petition. "This will only encourage him to repose faith in us. So, I told him, this for us, is a strategy. So, after seeing how this situation evolves, all of them will come on our side," he says.
The BJP leader today did not deny the conversation but the priest said he never had a discussion like this with anyone but his family. "So what? I am a lawyer, he had taken legal opinion from me. Many CPM ministers have taken opinion from me," Pillai told news agency ANI.
Referring to the video, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan called it proof that BJP leaders had connived to create trouble in Sabarimala. ‘‘The odious politics and perfidious ways of BJP stand exposed. Evidence has surfaced that BJP leaders in the State connived to create trouble in Sabarimala. It must be noted that their State president himself was involved in the ruse. This is highly condemnable.’’
A 26-year-old woman arrived at Pamba on Monday evening seeking protection to visit the Sabarimala temple, after it was opened at 5 pm for a two-day special puja. Manju was the only woman to attempt to enter the hill shrine on Monday, leading to protests by Hindu outfits and devotees at Pamba. She was accompanied by her husband and two children. However, the cops are unlikely to take her to the shrine at night. Hundreds of police personnel, armed commandos, surveillance cameras and mobile jammers have been deployed at the abode of Lord Ayyappa, which has been turned into a virtual fortress.