Kerala Government’s Selective Justice: Closure of CAA agitation cases while Sabarimala cases persist

The Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left Democratic Front (LDF) Government’s double standard and minority vote bank politics are once again exposed. The Pinarayi Government has instructed the Kerala State Police Chief to close all pending cases in connection with the 2019 anti-CAA agitation. Observers see this as a step to protect the workers of Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political outfit of Popular Front of India (PFI), and the alleged fellow travellers of CPM who were involved in violent agitations against Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA).

However, thousands of devotees who participated in non-violent Sabarimala agitations are still facing legal proceedings. Their agitation was for protecting the faith and rituals of Sabarimala temple in the light of the Government of Kerala’s initiative to break the temple rituals by facilitating the temple entry of ‘undesirable’ young women to the shrine. According to the Sabarimala convention, women between the ages of 10 and 50 are not permitted to enter the temple and worship. It is a centuries-old tradition. But, when the Government used a Supreme Court order as an opportunity to hurt the feelings of the devotees, lakhs of people took to the street to protest, but it was 100 per cent non-violent, and the majority of them were women. They carried out namajapayatra, marches chanting Ayyappa Bhajans. They asserted that they were ‘Ready to Wait Until They Turn 50′. Police unleashed atrocities and unprecedented violent attacks against the protesters. Pictures of Swami Ayyappa were smashed and broken into pieces. Those days, there were allegations that the violent constables did not belong to the regular police force, but several of them were DYFI men clad in police uniforms. Given the cruel postures they practised, there are much takers for this allegation. Devotees around the world were shocked to see top police officers escorting women clad in police uniforms to the shrine. (But for the devotees’ strong, non-violent resistance, they would have entered the shrine). Still, cases were registered against the non-violent devotees, most of them women.

SJR Kumar, National General Secretary of Sabarimala Karma Samiti (Sabarimala Action Council), said that the Government’s decision is a blatant double standard. Kumar said that the Government’s decision in 2022 to close the cases in connection with the Sabarimala agitation was nothing but an eyewash to withdraw the cases registered against SDPI agitations pertaining to CAA. SJR Kumar said that the devotees hold an ardent resolution that not a single chance should be missed to give a befitting reply to the political outfits which deliberately hurt their religious feelings and sentiments. Lakhs of devotees came out to risk their lives for the sake of their faith. Mothers and women underwent brutal police torture. Some of them lost life and joined the esteemed team of balidanis; thousands of people are trapped in fake cases; thousands of devotees are in deep financial trouble as they had to deposit funds to get bail. Lakhs of rupees have been spent like this. Thousands suffered material losses; thousands lost their bread-winning jobs and job opportunities due to criminal cases registered against them. Given these pitiable situations, people have naturally resolved to teach the political parties, guilty of it, a lesson or two.

SJR Kumar said that Kerala is badly in need of a Government which will give all Hindu worshipping centres, including Sabarimala, the respectful treatment they deserve. In this regard, Sabarimala Karma Samiti will hold discussions with those who were and are involved in Sabarimala movements, the devotees and the organisations they represent, and the legal experts who took lead roles in Sabarimala agitations and litigations in the Supreme Court. There will also be discussions on the possibility of legislation for the strong foundation and existence of the temples and Hindu faith.

SJR Kumar added that the devotees and believers will have to take certain ‘political stands’ to resist the ruling CPM’s attempts to exploit the Sabarimala faith as a political tool against them (devotees and believers). He was mooting the pro-active idea of a political change favouring Hindu interests.

It is to be remembered that by closing the cases registered in connection with CAA, Pinarayi has done the needful to ensure the Muslim vote bank, which is very crucial for LDF to win. But Hindu voters are conscious of this sinister trick. They have resolved that they will not fall easy prey to political manipulators any more. Their anger boils as Pinarayi has not taken a single step to close the Sabarimala agitation cases despite the decision of 2022.