Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan lashed out at the Sangh Parivar for attacks on Christians even while trying to pamper the community in Kerala.
Inaugurating the CPI(M) district conference here on Friday, Mr. Vijayan said the Sangh Parivar had unleashed widespread attacks on minorities, including Christians and scheduled communities.
He said Hindutva extremists had unleashed many attacks during Christmas celebrations. “Shouting ‘Santa Claus murdabad’, they burnt the effigies in Andhra. They attacked Christians at a Varanasi hospital during the celebration. They destroyed a statue of Jesus at Ambala. They made attacks in Kurukshetra and Assam.”
The Chief Minister said when there were 142 attacks against Christians in 2015, it increased manifold to 478 in 2021. “The maximum number of attacks was reported from Uttar Pradesh,” he said.
He said the Sangh Parivar was accosting Christians in Kerala because of the State’s secular nature. “Our warnings against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) policies have become a reality. Only corporates are supporting the BJP policies,” he said.
SilverLine project
He accused the BJP of trying to use the Centre against the State government in connection with the SilverLine project. The Congress, BJP and the Jamat-e-Islami were conspiring against the State government, he said. “The Congress is becoming a B-team of the BJP,” he said.
Senior party leader C.T. Krishnan hoisted the flag. Apart from Mr. Vijayan, central committee members A.K. Balan, K.K. Shailaja, Josephine, K. Radhakrishnan and E.P. Jayarajan were present.
N.N. Krishnadas welcomed the gathering. V.K. Chandran presided over the function.
