Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan slams Congress, accuses it of adopting 'soft Hindutva' stance

Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 31 (PTI) Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday lambasted the Congress in the state assembly, accusing the grand old party of adopting a "soft Hindutva" stance, and criticised it for failing to uphold Nehruvian secularism.

In his response to the debate on the Motion of Thanks to the Governor's Policy address, Vijayan scrutinised the actions of the opposition party in the state, pointing out that Rahul Gandhi visited a temple in Assam during the Ram Temple consecration ceremony, and that Congress governments in Karnataka and Himachal Pradesh had organised special celebrations to mark the occasion.

"What message was the Congress trying to convey? Is it possible to combat extreme communalism with soft communalism?" he asked.

Vijayan characterised these actions of the Congress as embracing "soft Hindutva" when it should instead have countered the BJP's communal agenda. "The Congress is not able to follow Nehruvian secularism. It is adopting a soft Hindutva policy," he asserted.

In his address, the chief minister cited the Karnataka Congress government's instruction to the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Department to conduct special pujas at all state-run temples, and the Himachal Pradesh government declaring a public holiday during the Ram Temple consecration ceremony on January 22.

The Left veteran also made a veiled but hard-hitting attack against Prime Minister Narendra Modi saying that the act of administrators appearing as priests in religious ceremonies would shake the foundation stones of a secular country.

Rulers represent different castes and religions in the country, he said, apparently referring to the recent participation of Modi as 'yajman' in the consecration ceremony of Ayodhya temple.

Stating that nobody has the right to violate the constitutionally guaranteed right to practise one's faith, he accused the Sangh Parivar forces of trying exploit religious sentiments for political gains.

He also criticised leaders in power at the Centre for posing a challenge to the deep-rooted secularism, democracy and diversity in the country's culture, saying they are planning and implementing policies that would uproot the values that the country had upheld since the time of the national movement.

"It is (now) an era in which the essence of the great Constitution is largely eroded," he remarked.

Slamming the Centre over its alleged poor governance, Vijayan indicated that the BJP seeks votes in the name of religion because it has nothing to show in terms of performance.

Observing that the union government has been eroding the essence of democratic values, he said the Centre had merely retained the Constitution for namesake while not formally declaring a state of emergency in the country.

Furthermore, he warned that right wing forces were not just seeking political power, but were tampering with history, education, culture and so on. "If the rich and diverse democratic tradition of the country is to survive, they (Sangh Parivar forces) should not come to power once again (in the Lok Sabha elections)," the chief minister said.

Reiterating accusations about the union government's alleged discriminatory policies and approaches being responsible for Kerala's poor financial position, he described it as an "economic embargo" on the state, and called the measures unconstitutional.

Vijayan was scathing in his condemnation of the opposition Congress for not standing by the state and staging a united protest against the Centre's anti-federal policies.

The chief minister did not spare Governor Arif Mohammed Khan either in his two-hour-long speech.

Apparently referring to Khan's reluctance to approve some significant bills, he said the governor's actions are weakening not only federalism but also the bedrock of Parliamentary democracy -- as legislation passed by the assembly are delayed being made into law.

He also repeated his accusations about the Governor attempting to appoint communal persons in institutions of higher education by using his powers as Chancellor of universities.

He attacked the Congress for also not joining the fight staged by the Left outfits against this alleged saffronisation bid by the governor. PTI