Thiruvananthapuram, February 23 The ruling LDF and the opposition UDF engaged in a heated verbal clash in the Kerala Assembly over the Sabarimala gold theft case and the arrest of Tantri Kandararu Rajeevaru as the House reconvened after a brief break on Monday.
The UDF subsequently boycotted the proceedings and walked out of the House before Speaker A N Shamseer curtailed the session for the day.
As soon as the question hour began, the Congress-led opposition informed Speaker A N Shamseer that they would not cooperate with the House proceedings due to the government's stance on various matters related to Sabarimala, including the gold theft case and the women's entry issue.
Holding placards and chanting slogans demanding the resignation of Devaswom Minister V N Vasavan, the UDF members staged a protest in front of the Speaker's podium. Later, they sat in the well of the House and continued chanting slogans.
In the absence of Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan, who is on his ongoing 'Navayuga Yatra', senior Congress legislator K Babu informed the House of their position.
He criticised the government over the arrest of the accused without any evidence and highlighted the granting of bail to the accused in the case.
He alleged that the major accused had been granted bail due to government lapses, and that they were now living freely outside prison.
"The Tantri was imprisoned for 40 days, as he had not supported the government's stand on the violation of rituals at Sabarimala," Babu alleged, referring to the women's entry issue in 2018.
He further pointed out that the alleged irregularities occurred during the Global Ayyappa Sangamam organized by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) with the government's support.
The Tripunithura MLA also accused the government of adopting a "suspicious stance" in the women's entry issue when the matter was recently taken up by the Supreme Court.
"Because of the government's stance in these matters, we have not been cooperating with the House proceedings for some time. Today also we will not cooperate," he added.
However, Law Minister P Rajeev and Parliamentary Affairs Minister M B Rajesh strongly rejected the UDF's charges.
Rajeev said that the opposition's criticism was directed at the High Court, which had observed that the Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe into the gold theft case was progressing in the right direction.
He asserted that the investigation was being conducted under the supervision of the High Court division bench and that the investigation reports were being submitted to the court in a sealed cover.
"The government has no role in the investigation. The report is not submitted before the government. Whether the tantri is an accused or complainant does not concern the government," Rajeev said.
He alleged that the opposition's agitation had a clear political agenda and accused the Congress of "paving the way for BJP politics" in the state.
"The UDF is continuing their agitation even after the High Court made it clear that the probe is progressing in the right direction. So, the protest is with a clear political agenda," he alleged.
Referring to the Ayodhya temple matter, the minister alleged that the Congress has paved the way for the BJP to use Hindutva and temple politics.
Though the BJP and the Congress have different names, both parties now represent the same politics and ideology, which is a threat to the secularism of Kerala, he said.
The opposition's allegations were against the High Court, and so they should be removed from the Assembly records, he added.
Minister Rajesh also vehemently criticised the Congress-led UDF over its support extended to Tantri, saying the chief priest had no special privilege over other accused persons.
He accused both the Congress and the BJP of taking up the Tantri's cause for "political gains".
He also alleged that the opposition was expecting a "golden opportunity" to take agitation to the streets again in the name of Sabarimala tantri.
Amidst intense protests by the opposition, members of the treasury benches also raised posters, including one carrying images of Sonia Gandhi along with Unnikrishnan Potty, the prime accused in the case.
Despite the uproar and sloganeering in the well of the House, the Speaker continued with the Question Hour proceedings.
As the UDF members trooped out of the House, the Speaker hurriedly took up other businesses of the day, including some significant bills like the Nativity Card Bill.
Later, he announced that the House was adjourned for the day.