KOCHI: The BJP will not allow any kind of violence in Sabarimala in the wake of protests triggered by the Supreme Court verdict allowing women of all ages to enter the Ayyappa temple, said party state general secretary MT Ramesh.
“The party is not planning to turn Sabarimala into a land of quarrel or violence. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is misleading the people by saying that the BJP is attempting to create violence,” the BJP leader said here on Tuesday.
The NDA will take out a five-day Sabarimala Samrakshana Yatra from Pandalam to Thiruvananthapuram demanding the protection of rituals and beliefs of the hill shrine.BJP state president P S Sreedharan Pillai will lead the rally, which will be attended by BDJS leader Thushar Vellappally, he said. BJP Tamil Nadu unit president Tamilisai Soundararajan and other leaders will attend the inaugural ceremony of the rally to be held on Wednesday. It will conclude in the capital on October 15 with 50,000 people expected to march to the Secretariat.
He said the Chief Minister should make it clear why he had forced the Travancore Devaswom Board, which had decided to file a review petition, to backtrack on the issue. “Right now, the fight is between the arrogance of the Chief Minister and the faith of the Ayyappa devotees. The Chief Minister had cited wrong statements on Sabarimala. He is fearing the chanting of Saranam Ayyappa,” said Ramesh.
Replying to a query on the statement by SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan favouring the implementation of the Supreme Court verdict, Ramesh said it was his personal opinion.“However, BDJS and its leader Thushar Vellappally will take part in the five-day yatra to the capital,” added Ramesh.