By Muslim Mirror Staff
Two days after the blasts targeting a Christian sect’s convention near Kochi, a war of words has erupted between Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Union Minister of State Rajeev Chandrashekhar. The exchange of accusations and fiery statements has brought attention to the alleged attempts to sow discord within the state.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan accused Union Minister Rajeev Chandrashekhar of attempting to “tarnish the secular fabric of the state” with what he termed “deadly poison.” The disagreement stems from a social media post by Chandrasekhar that appeared to place blame on a specific community for the blasts that took place on Sunday near Kochi, resulting in the death of three individuals and injuring over 50 more.
Chandrasekhar’s post on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) read: “Dirty shameless appeasement politics by a discredited CM (and HM) @pinarayivijayan besieged by corruption charges. Sitting in Delhi and protesting against Israel, when in Kerala open calls by Terrorist Hamas for Jihad is causing attacks and bomb blasts on innocent Christians.”
In response, Chief Minister Vijayan strongly criticized Chandrasekhar, branding his statements as reflective of an “absolute communal outlook.” During a press conference in Kochi, he accused Chandrasekhar and his party colleagues of deliberately targeting a specific community to incite communal polarization in the state.
Vijayan remarked that Chandrasekhar’s statement did not befit the responsible position he held. The Chief Minister further expressed his disapproval, stating that such divisive rhetoric could lead to an unhealthy atmosphere in the state.
In retaliation, Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar called Chief Minister Vijayan a “liar” and accused him of using terms like “communal” and “communalism” to “hide his ineptness as home minister of the state” and “cover up his own and his government’s corruption and appeasement politics that he has copied from the Congress.”
Speaking to reporters in Kochi on Monday afternoon, Chandrasekhar alleged that under Vijayan’s leadership, Kerala had shown tolerance towards radical elements and radicalization. He clarified that he did not mention any specific community in his social media post on X and suggested that the Chief Minister was unfairly equating Hamas with the broader Muslim population of the state and the country.