Protests During Amit Shah Visit Will Affect Centre-State Ties: Keralam BJP Chief

Thiruvananthapuram: BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Monday warned that protests and incidents involving the security convoys of Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Vice President C P Radhakrishnan during their visits to Keralam could adversely affect Centre-state relations. In a Facebook post, Chandrasekhar shared images of Prime Minister Narendra Modi being welcomed by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay during his recent visit to the state.

He referred to a Youth Congress protest against Shah during his recent visit to Kollam and an incident in which two youngsters riding a motorcycle came close to the Vice President's convoy during his visit to Keralam.

Describing such incidents as "petty political theatrics", Chandrasekhar said they could have serious consequences or, at the very least, create an impression that relations between the Centre and the state were strained.

He also warned that the fallout could affect investments and employment opportunities in Keralam.

"The victims of such low-level politics are not politicians, but ordinary Malayalis who live in the hope of jobs and development," he said.

Politicians would not have to bear the consequences, but ordinary people waiting for development would be forced to endure hardship repeatedly, Chandrasekhar said.

He also alleged that Congress's "politics of lies" would lead to continued unemployment, high inflation and a lack of development, problems which Keralam had faced during the previous 10 years of Pinarayi Vijayan's rule.

BJP had carried out protests by blocking Keralam ministers across Keralam in response to Youth Congress agitation against Shah.