BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Sunday criticised Chief Minister V D Satheesan for condemning three Vice Chancellors in Kerala who attended an event addressed by RSS chief and hit out at the Congress-led UDF government of practising “appeasement politics.”
In a social media post, Chandrasekhar said the chief minister had no moral authority to lecture others on secularism or constitutional values.
“Someone who has normalised radical Islam and organisations such as Jamaat-e-Islami, and who is in power only because of the support of the Muslim League and Jamaat-e-Islami, must not talk about supporting secularism or respecting the Constitution,” he alleged.
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Chandrasekhar said it was unacceptable for a chief minister sworn to uphold the Constitution to criticise Vice Chancellors for attending a public programme addressed by the RSS chief.
“It is unacceptable that a chief minister who has taken an oath to uphold the law and the Constitution is now intimidating Vice Chancellors for attending a public programme with RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat,” he alleged.
The BJP leader further alleged that the UDF government was dependent on the support of organisations that advocated religious politics.
He also accused both the Congress and the CPI(M) of using the BJP and the RSS as tools for political mobilisation and vote-bank politics.
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“The days of treating the BJP and RSS as a way to fear-monger and mobilise votes are over. People of Kerala now know that when it comes to appeasement politics, the Congress and the CPI(M) are not two, but one,” he alleged.
Chandrasekhar’s remarks came in response to a Facebook post by the chief minister in which Satheesan termed the participation of three Vice Chancellors in the RSS centenary programme as a serious lapse.
“The participation of three Vice Chancellors in the meeting addressed by RSS Sarsanghchalak Mohan Bhagwat as part of the RSS centenary celebrations is being viewed with utmost seriousness. The Vice Chancellors have committed a grave lapse,” Satheesan had said.
The CM had also demanded that the Vice Chancellors apologise to the people of Kerala.
The Vice Chancellors of Kerala University, Mahatma Gandhi University and Malayalam University attended the RSS centenary programme held in Thiruvananthapuram on Saturday.
Chandrasekhar also raised questions over the appointment of Advocate K B Pradeep as Special Pleader for the Devaswom Department.
Pradeep had resigned from the post after controversy erupted over his earlier appearance as counsel for an accused in the Sabarimala gold loss case.
“The issue does not end with the resignation of Pradeep. Several serious questions remain unanswered,” Chandrasekhar alleged.
He questioned the basis on which the Congress-led government appointed a lawyer who had appeared for the accused in the Sabarimala gold loss case to represent the Devaswom Board.
“Who approved this appointment? Was it a deliberate attempt to derail the ongoing investigation,” he asked.
The BJP leader pointed out that Satheesan had earlier demanded a CBI probe into the Sabarimala gold loss case while serving as Leader of the Opposition.
“After coming to power, that demand disappeared. Instead, the government appointed as Devaswom Special Pleader the same lawyer who had appeared for the accused in the case,” he alleged.
He further alleged that the Congress and the CPI(M) were united in protecting those responsible for the irregularities connected with Sabarimala.
“The BJP-NDA’s struggle will continue until every person involved in the Sabarimala gold loss case and related irregularities is brought before the law,” he said.