Rajnath slams State Govt, says ‘God not safe in Kerala’ over Sabarimala row
Senior BJP leader and Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Wednesday launched a scathing attack on the ruling LDF in poll-bound Kerala, alleging that “God was not secure” in the State known as God’s own country, as the Left front betrayed Lord Ayyappa for a few pieces of gold — a reference to the Sabarimala gold loss cases.
Singh, speaking at a public meeting in Paravur assembly constituency as part of the BJP-led NDA’s poll campaign, said that “just like Judas betrayed Jesus Christ for a few pieces of silver, the LDF has betrayed Lord Ayyappa for a few pieces of gold”.
He contended that if this was the plight of God, the situation of the common people would be much worse and assured that there would be a time-bound CBI probe into the alleged misappropriation of gold from the shrine when the BJP-led NDA comes to power in Kerala.
He demanded that the Kerala Government should explain how there was a lapse in safeguarding the gold of the Sabarimala shrine and said that it amounted to betrayal of the religious beliefs of devotees, which cannot be countenanced.
“Those who stole the gold from the doors of the Sabarimala shrine, will be shown the door by the people of Kerala,” he asserted.
Singh also alleged that while some CPI(M) leaders stole the gold from the shrine, certain Congress leaders helped them sell it, “which shows that both LDF and UDF are the same”.
The senior BJP leader also accused the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) of betraying the people of Kerala, dividing society, “destroying” the state’s economy and not fulfilling their promises to the public.
Under the successive rule of LDF and UDF, the debt on Kerala has risen to nearly Rs five lakh crore now, he claimed.
He said that while both fronts accuse the Centre of withholding funds to Kerala, the BJP Government between 2014 and 2024 has given Rs 1.5 lakh crore to the state.
Singh also claimed that various central Government projects were being obstructed in Kerala by the Left administration.
The defence minister alleged that the ‘front’ word in both LDF and UDF means “front of corruption”.
He further alleged that LDF means “loot, division and failure”, while UDF means “untrustworthy, dishonesty and fraud” and referred to the various scams that took place during the rule of the LDF and the UDF.
He alleged that state-sponsored gold smuggling occurred in 2020, when the LDF was in power, and people close to Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan were involved in it.
Singh also said that a person in the CM’s family was allegedly found to be involved in money laundering in connection with a case related to Cochin Minerals and Rutile Ltd (CMRL).
During the UDF tenure, there was the solar scam, Palarivattom bridge scam and bar bribery scandal, he said and added that the Congress-led front was just as bad as the CPI(M)-led LDF.
Singh also claimed that the Communists have made Kerala known for violence as they allegedly killed hundreds of RSS and BJP workers over the years in the state.
“Not just in Kerala, but worldover the Communists are known for their path of bloodshed,” he contended, adding that the Left politics was one of “revenge and violence”.
He further contended that the Left and UDF politics were also one of appeasement and said that the Munambam land issue was an example of the same.
He also said that appeasement politics was also resulting in an increase in religious extremism in the state, and many youths were falling prey to it.
Singh alleged that the Congress was attempting to bring anti-national forces to the mainstream and would go to any extent, including selling the country, to gain power.
“Who will save Kerala from Jamaat-e-Islami, Popular Front of India (PFI) and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI),” he asked.
The defence minister said that only the BJP can save Kerala from them and it was the only “major alternative” to bring change to the state.
“The victory of Suresh Gopi from Thrissur Lok Sabha seat in 2024 and the BJP winning the Thiruvananthapuram Corporation in 2025 was only a beginning,” he asserted.
He also referred to ‘The Kerala Story’ movie and said that the Kerala story should not be about what was shown in the film.
“It should be about development, progress, prosperity and peace,” he said.
In his campaign speech, Singh said that the crime rate was rising in the State which indicated that the Left Government has failed to maintain law and order in Kerala.
“Cybercrimes, offences against women and children and alcohol consumption are all increasing in the state,” he contended, adding that Kerala was “in the grips of drugs”.
Unemployment was the highest in the State and the youth of Kerala were migrating for jobs and education, he claimed.
He also claimed that there was a lack of development and basic infrastructure in the Paravur assembly constituency -- the sitting seat of opposition leader V D Satheesan.
The Assembly elections in Kerala will be held on April 9.
