A dawn-to-dusk shutdown called by the BJP to protest against the death of a man said to be a Sabarimala devotee derailed Kerala on Friday, sparking widespread anger over the disruption to normal life.
The 50-year-old Venugopalan Nair set himself on fire at a BJP protest venue on Thursday and succumbed to his injuries in a hospital here. But in his dying declaration, he made no mention of the Sabarimala temple.
Before being taken to the public crematorium, his body was brought to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) protest venue where party leaders paid their last respect.
But the rationale for calling the shutdown came under fire from the ruling CPI-M, Congress, business groups as well as the man on the street.