Accusing BJP State President P.S. Sreedharan Pillai of trying to foment communal tension in the State, CPI(M) leader V. Sivankutty has filed a complaint with the Election Commission and the Attingal police against Mr. Pillai for an alleged speech against the Muslim community.
Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Mr. Sivankutty, who is coordinating A. Sampath’s campaign in Attingal, said the speech was a blatant violation of the model code of conduct.
‘‘Mr. Pillai has made reprehensible remarks against the Muslim community with the hope that it would garner votes for the BJP. It is the kind of speech no political leader has ever made in Kerala. The speech is not just a violation of the model code of conduct, but also a criminal act under IPC Section 153A for promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion,’’ said Mr. Sivankutty.
He said he had also filed a complaint against Swami Chidananda Puri with the Election Commission for violation of the model code of conduct.
‘‘He just has a Swami attached to his name, but he is a worker of the BJP-RSS. For the past few days, he has made it a habit to hurl insults at Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. Now, he has organised a protest in front of the Secretariat and openly claimed that he will go against the Election Commission’s directives to not use religion and Sabarimala as an election issue,’’ said Mr. Sivankutty.
‘Misinterpreted’
Responding to the allegations, Mr. Pillai said in a press release that the CPI(M) and the Congress had taken his words out of context and misinterpreted to inflame communal passions, as they feared the loss of minority votes.
