Opposition protest over Sabarimala gold row rocks Kerala assembly

Dramatic scenes unfolded in the Kerala Assembly on Tuesday as the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) clashed over allegations of the Sabarimala gold theft case investigations.

The Assembly witnessed uproarious scenes as Opposition UDF members displayed placards, raised slogans, and attempted to enter the Speaker’s dais as part of their protest against the LDF government in connection with the Sabarimala gold theft cases.

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As soon as Question Hour began, the Opposition MLAs stormed the well of the House and blocked the view of the Speaker by raising banners and placards, demanding the resignation of Devaswom Minister VN Vasavan in connection with the Sabarimala gold case. When the UDF members held a banner covering the Speaker’s face, the Watch and Ward forcefully seized it. The MLAs’ attempt to enter the dais was prevented by the Watch and Ward.

The House was adjourned twice following the uproar. The House was initially adjourned when MLA Anwar Sadat and others tried to jump onto the dais. Speaker AN Shamsir got up from his seat and left.

When the House resumed, the Speaker said that the action of the MLAs who tried to climb onto the dais was not correct. With this, MLAs, including Mathew Kuzhalnadan, tried to climb onto the dais. Watch and ward prevented them. In the meantime, an attempt was made to seize the banner held high by the opposition. The Opposition alleged that the Watch and Ward staff used excessive force and physically assaulted members while seizing banners.

The situation deteriorated following a verbal duel between the treasury and Opposition benches. After the UDF members sang a parody song questioning “who stole the gold,” Minister for General Education V Sivankutty retaliated with a controversial remark linking Congress leader Sonia Gandhi to gold smuggling, implying that the Congress leadership was the beneficiary of such thefts. The remark provoked the Opposition members, who rushed to the Well, blocking the Speaker with banners.

Opposition Leader V D Satheesan accused the government of deliberately delaying the filing of the charge sheet to help the accused, including CPM functionaries and prime accused Unnikrishnan Potti, to secure statutory bail.

The Opposition leader alleged there were lapses in the probe by the Special Investigation Team (SIT). Satheesan said the High Court has stated that the accused got statutory bail because the charge sheet was not filed. “The court has repeatedly pointed out that there has been a delay in the investigation. The investigation was obstructed due to pressure from the Chief Minister’s Office. If the accused are released on bail, the remaining evidence will also be destroyed. For the first time ever, the opposition’s banner was forcibly seized by the watch and ward staff. That is why opposition members climbed onto the dais. We did not indulge in any violence. It was the watch and ward staff who tried to create violence. The Speaker is challenging us. We were not invited for discussions to cooperate with the House proceedings,” Satheesan said

Rejecting the allegations raised by VD Satheesan, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that the investigation in the Sabarimala gold theft case was proceeding under the direct supervision of a Division Bench of the Kerala High Court, which had expressed satisfaction with the special investigation team’s progress. He said that the adverse remarks cited by the Opposition were made by a Single Bench while considering bail applications and did not reflect the view of the monitoring Division Bench. He dismissed the protests as “antics” intended to mask the Opposition’s political insecurity.

Meanwhile, the UDF announced a boycott of the session, stating they could not cooperate with a government allegedly complicit in looting temple wealth. The Opposition continued their protest outside the Assembly hall, raising banners that accused the LDF government of “alchemy that turns gold into copper.”