In a strongly-worded statement published on Children's Day, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has called for all progressive forces in the world to raise their voice against the killing of children in war-torn Gaza. As many as 4,609 children were killed in the Israeli attacks in Gaza and the faces of children, injured and orphaned in the attacks, leave your mind wounded, he said.
"These tragedies cannot be alleviated without an end to the Israeli occupation supported by the imperialist powers. For this, all the progressive forces of the world should raise their voices together. May this Children's Day be a reminder for collective action for the safety and rehabilitation of children in Palestine," CM Pinarayi stated on the morning of November 14, celebrated as Children's Day to honour the memory of independent India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru.
"The architects of the Constitution, including Nehru, envisioned an India free of violence and exploitation of children," he said. After this, the Chief Minister's office released a statement, acknowledging the death penalty sentence to the man convicted of killing a five-year-old girl in Aluva. The judgment on Children's Day was a strong warning to those who abuse kids, the statement said.
A day earlier, the Chief Minister condemned what he called organised efforts to destroy the social and cultural excellence of Kerala. "There are vile campaigns to denigrate Kerala at the national level and propaganda films are part of it," the CM said while inaugurating the state leadership convention of Kerala Navodhana Samithi in Thiruvananthapuram.
Bringing up the Kalamassery blasts of October 29, CM Pinarayi condemned the early attempts to communalise the incident. "This [attempt to communalise the incident] was the work of some powerful forces in the country. But Kerala stood united to resist those moves," he said in a veiled criticism of several right wing activists and part of the media who had jumped to conclusions over the identity of the attackers. All speculations were put to an end when a man came forward to claim responsibility of the attack, citing his disillusionment with the Jehovah's Witnesses whose convention was going on in the venue of the blasts.
Read: Who is Dominic Martin, the man who claimed responsibility for Kerala blasts?
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The Chief Minister also alluded to the alleged attempts made by certain groups to create fake histories about the country. He said that communal riots and hatred had spread in many countries, where renaissance movements had begun but failed to continue. "So it is very important that in times like these, we move ahead with the values of renaissance," he said.
He also stressed on the importance of holding onto secular values, which allowed the freedom to practice any religion. It was in the character of Kerala society to be united in mind while having different religious beliefs, he said. A casteless society was one where no one asked for or gave one's caste, and which would eventually erase caste or make it irrelevant.
All of these issues will be attended to by the Navodhana Samithi, the CM said. The committee is chaired by the Additional Chief Secretary of Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Department and has as its members, special secretary of the department, director of Scheduled Castes Department and director of Scheduled Tribes Department.