Chief Minister's comments come as the role of the state police in the matter has been questioned
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said that the BJP and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh or RSS wanted to turn the Sabarimala hill shrine into "a war zone". The opposition BJP in the state and its ideological mentor have allegedly been organising protests against the Supreme Court order that ended the centuries-old ban on women of reproductive age and allowed them to offer prayers at the Sabarimala temple.
Since the temple opened for a five-day period last week, the angry protesters have forced nine young women to abandon their journey to the temple.
"The incidents of preventing women in the 10-50 age group from entering the temple and attacking the media personnel, who had come to cover the historic event, was part of a conspiracy led by the RSS," Mr Vijayan alleged.
He said that the government has the "constitutional responsibility" of implementing the Supreme Court order. "No attempt to convert the complex into a war zone would be allowed," Mr Vijayan said.
The Chief Minister's comments come as the role of the state police in the matter has been questioned. The opposition Congress has attacked the government, accusing it of "inept handling" of the situation.
The raucous protests, during which women were heckled and abused and the media came under attack, happened mostly in police presence. But despite their failure to control the protesters, no police officer has been taken to task by the Left-led government, which had promised to uphold the top court's ruling.
The Chief Minister, instead, said a "heinous attempt" was made by the RSS to communalise the state police as well -- an apparent reference to the online abuses against senior police officers Manoj Abraham and S Sreejith, who had been deputed to the temple premises to maintain law and order.
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear 19 petitions that have sought a review of its order on November 13.