THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Taking action against the controversial ‘love jihad’ remarks made during the election campaign by NDA candidate in Kattakada, P K Krishnadas, the Election Commission sought a report on the incident from the district collector.
Krishnadas’ remarks triggered a political row after alleging in a public speech that if the LDF or UDF came to power, governance would effectively fall into the hands of organisations like SDPI and Jamaat-e-Islami. He further claimed that such a scenario would encourage “love jihad”, and alleged that Hindu women would be targeted for conversion and that such activities could be used for “anti-national” purposes. The remarks drew sharp reactions, following which officials said the district collector has been asked to examine the speech and submit a report.
Meanwhile, the statement also appeared to create unease within the BJP. The party’s state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that such views do not reflect the party’s official position.
He noted that if the party held such a stance, it would have been explicitly included in its election manifesto. Responding to the controversy, Krishnadas defended his remarks, maintaining that his statements were consistent with the BJP’s ideological position.