Viral Sabarimala Gold Theft Spoof Song Embarrasses CPM After Poll Defeat

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: More than their defeat in the local body polls, what ’s troubling a section of CPM leaders is the viral political spoof song “Potiye Kettiye,” widely used by rivals during the recent elections.

The song, with verses "Potiye Kettiye , swarnam cembayi matiye ( you brought Potty up and installed him, you turned- gold into copper), referring to the Sabarimala temple gold theft case and the alleged involvement of CPM leaders, became an instant hit among people, including children. Hundreds of reels were made, much to the discomfort of the Marxist leaders.

The song depicted how the ruling party allegedly allowed the main accused, Unnkrishnan Potti, to climb up to the famous hill shrine, remove gold from sculptures and doorframes, and replace it with copper. The ruling front believes the spoof swayed a large number of voters against them across Kerala, becoming one of the factors for their defeat.

Even after the polls, the song continues to be used against the CPM, with opposition Congress-led UDF MPs from Kerala staging a demonstration in front of Parliament and singing it, drawing significant attention from the national media.

With the song becoming a major source of embarrassment for the ruling Front, a complaint was filed by Prasad Kuzhikal, general secretary of the Thiruvabharanam Padha Samraksha Samithi, with the Kerala DGP, alleging that the spoof song had hurt the religious sentiments of Ayyappa devotees. He claimed that the popular Ayyappa devotional song was distorted and misused for political purposes.

The DGP forwarded the complaint to an ADGP-level officer, asking him to examine whether there was scope for registering a case in the matter.

In another development, CPM Pathanamthitta district secretary Raju Abraham stated that the song was a serious violation of the election code of conduct.

LDF convener T.P. Ramakrishnan stated that if the song is found to harm religious faith, it will be reviewed. The parody controversy and related complaint come in the backdrop of discussions that the gold theft case had adversely affected the ruling front's prospects in the polls.

Opposition Leader V D Satheeshan hit back at the CPM, accusing the party of hypocrisy over using devotional tunes for political spoofs. He pointed out that the CPM had itself released a parody song with the same devotional tune years ago, targeting former chief minister and Congress stalwart, the late K Karunakaran. “If the CPM had no problem making a spoof song against a devotee like Karunakaran, why are they crying foul when a song is made about those who looted Sabarimala?” he asked. He also reminded CPM leaders that some of their own members are in jail in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft case.

The song’s producers clarified it was not created for any election campaign. It was produced by Malappuram-based Subari Pandalloor and Haneefa Mdikkode as a promotional track for their studio, with lyrics by Kunjabdulla Halappuram and vocals by Danish Malappuram.

The wrong writer and the singer denied the allegation that their song had hurt the religious sentiments of the devotees. "We have seen devotees putting this song in their vehicles. Only those who are facing allegations related to the gold theft in Sabarimala are disturbed by the parody song," said Danish.