Rajeev Chandrasekhar defends BJP leader Gopalakrishnan over ‘Hindu MLA’ remark, questions ‘selective outrage’

A day after a case was registered against BJP state vice president and party’s Guruvayur constituency candidate B. Gopalakrishnan for his controversial ‘Hindu MLA’ remark, BJP Kerala president Rajeev Chandrasekhar has come forward to defend his party colleague.

Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Monday said Gopalakrishnan’s remarks did not constitute hate speech and questioned what was wrong with the latter’s statement.

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“What he said, in my understanding, is whether there shouldn’t be an MLA in Guruvayur who is a believer, especially in this era of thefts in Sabarimala and Guruvayur. He is a candidate—what is wrong with his question? I don’t see how that becomes hate,” Chandrasekhar said.

The BJP Kerala chief also referred to an earlier remark by K.M. Shaji of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML). His statement that “religion, religion, religion is our issue; it is our identity” had sparked discussions, including in the state Assembly, with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan responding to it.

He questioned why statements made by BJP leaders are labelled as hate speech, while similar remarks by others are considered secular. Both issues deserve discussion, he added.

“Isn’t it wrong when K.M. Shaji says that religion is the issue? If the BJP says so, it is termed communal. Why does no one object when others say religion is the issue? Can a person of another religion become a senator in the Vatican? Can a Hindu become a representative in Mecca? What is the problem if an MLA who is a believer is elected? How does that become hate speech?” Chandrasekhar asked.

BJP Kerala vice president and Guruvayur constituency candidate B. Gopalakrishnan was on Sunday booked for making alleged communal remarks in a campaign video.

The Guruvayur Temple Police registered the case against Gopalakrishnan following a directive from the Chief Electoral Officer to the District Collector, based on a CPM complaint alleging violation of the Model Code of Conduct and use of communal statements.

In the video, Gopalakrishnan purportedly claimed that the constituency had not elected a Hindu MLA for nearly five decades. He also alleged that both the Left and the Congress-led fronts had not fielded candidates from the community.

Calling Guruvayur an international pilgrimage centre and the “land of Lord Guruvayurappan,” he alleged that it had been in the hands of “temple thieves” for the past five decades.

“Why has there been no Hindu MLA in Guruvayur so far?” Gopalakrishnan asked in the video.

“Neither the Left nor the Right have fielded a Hindu MLA. Guruvayur is an international pilgrimage centre, yet why isn’t there a Hindu MLA? I have been summoned by Guruvayurappan to free his land from this half-century-long control of temple looters and those opposed to temples,” he said in the video posted on March 20 on his social media handles.