Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has sharply criticized the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), accusing them of using the Waqf (Amendment) Act for political gain. Calling the move unconstitutional and discriminatory, CM Vijayan claimed it reflects a larger agenda of marginalizing minorities in India.
Speaking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram, CM Vijayan said, “The issue of the Munambam people is that they have been living there for a long time. It is difficult to move out of there. Their main issue is that they want to avoid moving out now. Since they have been living there for a long time, the government has given priority to how to protect their rights.”
He added that a commission had been appointed to study the matter, but despite appeals, protesters refused to wait for its findings. CM Vijayan alleged that the BJP had other political motivations and certain people tried to stir confusion using the Waqf amendment issue.
“Those expectations arose when some people went and told them. What needs to be seen in this is that this is a matter related to waqf, so some people showed interest in how to create confusion and how to make a profit from it. As they say, ‘To catch fish by stirring up the pond,’ in reality, the BJP has the most important agenda of the Sangh Parivar.”
CM Vijayan asserted that the amendment bill was a “complete fraud” and violates Article 26 of the Constitution, which guarantees religious freedom. He criticized Union Minister Kiran Rijiju for allegedly revealing the bill’s ineffectiveness during a press conference in Kochi.
“The BJP has most recently tried to exploit the situation politically by bringing Union Minister Kiran Rijiju to the forefront. When he held a press conference in Kochi, the truth accidentally came out of his mouth when the journalists asked him questions.”
The CM added that even the Samarasamithi Convener was shocked by Rijiju’s admission that the Waqf amendment wouldn’t resolve the Munambam issue and that the Supreme Court fight must continue.
“The BJP tried to deceive the people in Munambam. The government had earlier said that it would protect the people in Munambam, but for that, it needs the protection of the law.”
Vijayan also warned about the bill’s broader implications, accusing the RSS of promoting religious polarization. Referring to an article in Organiser, the RSS’s mouthpiece, he said:
“The organiser said that the properties owned by Christian churches are very large… The RSS sees minorities as internal enemies of the country; only two have been mentioned, Muslims and Christians.”
He concluded that the Centre’s actions reflect a politics of hatred, stating that the Kerala Assembly had unanimously passed a resolution against the bill, and the Left parties strongly opposed it in Parliament.
“After passing an extremely unconstitutional bill, the Sangh Parivar widely propagated that this was a single root cause of problems for the people of Munambam. The fact is that there were precise political objectives and calculations behind this.”