BJP State president P.S. Sreedharan Pillai’s remark that the ongoing agitation against the Supreme Court verdict allowing entry for women of all age groups into the Sabarimala temple “is part of the party’s agenda” has snowballed into a controversy.
At a meeting of the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha here on Sunday, Mr. Pillai said that Kandararu Rajeevararu, tantri of the Sabarimala Ayyappa temple, had discussed with him the plan to close the sanctum sanctorum in the event of women of menstruating age entering the temple.
He claimed that the Sabarimala agitation was a “golden opportunity for the party.” “...the Sabarimala issue is a puzzle, solving which is difficult. We set an agenda and everyone surrendered themselves before it. Those left behind ultimately will be ourselves and the ruling dispensation and their political formations,” Mr. Pillai said.
Planned by BJP
He said the Sabarimala agitation between September 17 and 22 was planned and executed by the BJP.
“Our State general secretaries were positioned in different places and they executed our plans. It was one of the general secretaries of the BJYM who organised devotees against attempts by [Inspector General of Police] Sreejith to take two women to the hill temple.... We need to try our maximum to prevent women in the 10-50 age group to the temple,” Mr. Pillai said.
Tantri’s call
“When those two women were about to reach the hill temple, the tantri called me. He was disturbed. He wanted to know if closing the sanctum sanctorum would amount to violation of the Supreme Court verdict and [amount to] contempt of court. I told him that such a charge will not stand. Also, if that happens, I will also be charged with the same offence. Thousands of our party workers too will be with us,” he said.
It was the tantri’s plan which perturbed the police and put the government in a dilemma, Mr. Pillai claimed.