Thiruvananthapuram: BJP national president Amit Shah has lashed out at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan over the Sabarimala issue and said that the police were “treating kids, mothers and the aged inhumanly, forcing them to undertake the pilgrimage without even basic facilities like food, water, shelter and clean toilets.”
In a tweet, he accused the LDF government of treating pilgrims as ‘Gulag inmates’ and forcing them to spend the nights next to ‘pig droppings.’ Mr Amit Shah, who was attending political rallies at Mizoram on Tuesday, said the BJP supports the Ayyappa devotees and will not allow the LDF to ‘crush people's faith with impunity.’
Gulag was a system of forced labour camps established by Russian ruler Joseph Stalin.
Mr Shah said, “if several reports of flushing resting places for devotees and them having to spend nights next to pig droppings & dustbin are true, then Pinarayi Vijayan must realise that he can’t treat Ayyappa devotees like inmates of Gulag. We won't let LDF crush people's faith with impunity.”
He also tweeted that if Pinarayi thinks he can stop people’s movements to preserve Sabarimala by arresting BJP state general secretary K. Surendran, BJP Thrissur district president and six others, then he is mistaken.
Meanwhile, Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan slammed Mr Shah saying his tweet on Sabarimala was unfounded and misleading.
In a rebuttal to Shah’s accusations, the chief minister said the Mandala pilgrim season was continuing in a smooth manner. “Pilgrims too have expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made in the hill shrine,” he said.Pinarayi said the pilgrims might have faced inconvenience due to the actions of Sangh Parivar elements who are hell bent on fomenting trouble with ulterior motives. Mr Shah must have been carried away by the campaign unleashed by these elements.The chief minister pointed out that union home minister Mr Rajnath Singh had gone on record that the government does not have any other option but to execute the order of the apex court. This statement itself is a reply to the allegation levelled by Shah. Pinarayi said the Human Rights Commission too had made it clear that there has been no serious problem with regard to the pilgrimage this year.
