Demanding accountability in the alleged Sabarimala gold scam, Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar called for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to apologize before Lord Ayyappa for mishandling the issue. The BJP staged a protest outside the Chief Minister’s residence, accusing the government of shielding the real culprits while targeting devotees and temple authorities.
Chandrasekhar criticized the arrest of the Sabarimala Tantri as politically motivated and lacking evidence. He alleged that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) acted to shield the Devaswom Minister and others in the government from scrutiny in the gold theft case. Despite the court’s observation of no evidence against the Tantri, he was hastily arrested, Chandrasekhar claimed.
The BJP presented three demands, including a CBI inquiry into the Sabarimala gold case, withdrawal of the State government’s affidavit in the Supreme Court, and cancellation of “false cases” against devotees. The party accused certain intermediaries of representing both the CPI(M) and the Congress, terming the investigation as “politically compromised.”
The Supreme Court inquired about the remaining gold in the temple while considering the bail plea of an accused, Pankaj Bhandari, scheduled for further hearing on March 9. Thirteen people were arrested in total, with six securing bail and the rest applying for bail. The BJP’s protest signifies an escalation of its campaign against the Left government, making the temple controversy a focal point in Kerala’s political landscape.
