Kerala BJP chief urges equal respect for faiths amid cafe video row, accuses CM Satheesan of ‘selective secularism’

BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Sunday accused Chief Minister VD Satheesan of practising "selective secularism" and questioned the ruling Congress and the CPI(M) over what he described as their support for a political culture that disrespects religious sentiments.

Chandrasekhar's remarks came in response to a social media post by Satheesan about the arrest of a YouTuber for allegedly making communal remarks in a video claiming that a cafe in Fort Kochi displayed a statue of Pakistan's founder, Muhammad Ali Jinnah, and served beef, while being named after the holy city of Kashi.

The video, shared on Instagram, triggered widespread criticism, with Satheesan and Leader of Opposition and Marxist veteran Pinarayi Vijayan condemning the alleged communal remarks.

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Fort Kochi police registered a case against Amrit Singh Darren, a YouTuber from a north Indian state, under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) over the video.

In his post, Chandrasekhar said Keralam belonged to all Malayalees, who alone would decide the state's present and future, including its food, culture and celebrations.

He also said Keralam was part of India and every Malayalee was an Indian.

While agreeing with the sentiment expressed by Satheesan, the BJP leader questioned the statue of Jinnah, the alleged justification of violence by proscribed terrorist organisations such as Hamas, and political alliances involving the Congress and CPI(M) with Jamaat-e-Islami, which he accused of being anti-secular and anti-constitutional.

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"Do not encourage anti-India , anti-Hindu insults/discourse/actions/sentiment like Jinnah worship. In that you will have our support.

But selective secularism and selective talk of communal harmony will make you like every other fake politician before you. And we will resist it. Fully. Everytime," the BJP leader told the CM.

He alleged that the two parties encouraged such political discourse and questioned how Satheesan would respond if a restaurant named after a Muslim holy city served pork.

Chandrasekhar also claimed that Vijayan had targeted him for speaking against what he described as Hamas' radicalisation efforts in Keralam.

There was an exchange of words between Vijayan and Chandrasekhar after a former Hamas leader online attended a Palestine-related event organised in Keralam in October 2023. The CPI(M)-led LDF was at the ruling saddle then.

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Citing Articles 19 and 19(2) of the Constitution, the former union minister said the right to freedom of speech and expression, along with the restrictions applicable to it, applied equally to every Indian.

He urged Satheesan to ensure equal sensitivity and respect for Hindus, Christians and Muslims and cautioned against what he termed anti-India and anti-Hindu insults and discourse.