Bharat Mata portrait row triggers protests; CPM mouthpiece slams guv

Thiruvananthapuram/Kozhikode: The Bharat Mata portrait row involving governor Rajendra V Arlekar and the state govt intensified on Saturday, with protests erupting across various parts of the state and CPM's mouthpiece Deshabhimani publishing a hard-hitting editorial against Raj Bhavan.

In a strongly worded editorial, Deshabhimani asserted that Raj Bhavan is not a "shakha" (unit) of RSS. It accused the governor of publicly challenging the Constitution by turning Raj Bhavan into a venue to display and propagate RSS ideology. How else could this act be described, if not as a blatant violation of constitutional norms, it asked.

According to the latest photos released by Raj Bhavan, the governor paid floral tributes to the portrait during the Yoga Day celebrations held there on Saturday. Raj Bhavan also dismissed reports that its security would be handed over to the central forces due to threats from opposition youth organisations. "The governor has total faith in the commitment to duty and efficiency of Kerala police in the discharge of their responsibility....," a statement from Raj Bhavan said.

CITU took out a protest march to Raj Bhavan, accusing the governor of attempting to turn it into a centre of RSS activity and violating the Constitution. SFI raised a banner in front of the Sanskrit College in Palayam, declaring that "Raj Bhavan is not RSS's ancestral property".

In Kozhikode, a protest by Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha (BJYM) against general education minister V Sivankutty, who had walked out of an event at Raj Bhavan over the portrait, ended in a clash with SFI workers. The BJYM workers staged the protest when the minister arrived at Jubilee Hall to attend an event organised in connection with the upcoming SFI national conference in the city.

As the minister arrived, Yuva Morcha workers waved black flags. However, a group of SFI workers present at the venue tried to stop them, leading to the clash. Police intervened and took the protesters into custody. Sivankutty later alleged that the RSS faction controlling Raj Bhavan had orchestrated the demonstrations against him in Kozhikode.

In protest against the police action, BJP workers staged a demonstration near the venue at Tali Temple. They burnt an effigy of Sivankutty and alleged that police personnel deployed in the area were aiding SFI workers in unleashing violence against BJYM activists. BJP district president Prakash Babu warned that the party would continue its protest if the police failed to take appropriate action against the SFI workers who, he claimed, attacked Yuva Morcha activists in custody.

Meanwhile, BJP workers paid floral tributes to portraits of Bharat Mata, similar to the one placed in Raj Bhavan, at various district centres as a mark of protest against the LDF govt's stand on the issue. (With agency inputs)