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The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Thursday announced a two-day round-the-clock protest and Secretariat blockade against the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Kerala government, alleging large-scale corruption and cover-up in the alleged gold loot from the Sabarimala temple.
The protest, to be held on October 24 and 25, will be inaugurated by BJP state President Rajeev Chandrasekhar.
The party has said the agitation aims to “expose the moral and administrative collapse” of the state government and demand accountability for the misappropriation of temple wealth.
The BJP state leadership has four key demands, which include the resignation of the Devaswom Minister V.N. Vasavan, holding him politically responsible for the scandal; the dissolution of the Travancore Devaswom Board, which manages the Sabarimala temple, citing alleged irregularities and misuse of funds. The third demand is for a comprehensive probe by Central agencies into all financial transactions of the Devaswom Board over the past three decades.
According to the BJP, only an independent central investigation can ensure transparency and restore public confidence in the administration of temple assets.
The last demand is for an immediate audit by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) of all Devaswom Boards functioning across the state.
The party leaders have alleged that the gold loot from Sabarimala represents one of the biggest scandals in recent times and accused the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government of shielding those responsible.
The BJP said it would intensify the agitation if the government failed to act on the issue.
The protest, which will see participation from across the state, is expected to create major political ripples in Kerala, especially with the soon-to-be-held local body polls and the Assembly elections scheduled for early 2026.
Incidentally, the fresh round of protests comes soon after the party's state leadership called on the visiting President Droupadi Murmu and briefed her on the Sabarimala scam. Chandrasekhar also wrote to Union Home Minister Amit Shah demanding immediate intervention of the Centre.
This move comes at a time when the Kerala High Court-appointed SIT has arrested two accused out of the 10 who have been named in two FIRs filed by the SIT.
Both the BJP and the Congress have cried foul over the SIT probe as it’s continuing to hover around officials of the TDB and sponsors while leaving out the political leadership of the CPI(M), whom these parties single out as the key people behind this scam.