Kerala Minister for Agriculture and CPI(M) member VS Sunil Kumar on Friday told a reporter that Trupti Desai is an ‘RSS activist’ who is attempting to enter Sabarimala to further the BJP and the RSS’ ideology in the state.
Trupti Desai and the Bhumata Brigade were stuck inside Cochin International Airport for over 12 hours after she landed there on Friday at 4.40 am in order to make her way towards Sabarimala temple. When protesters learnt of her arrival, they gathered in large numbers outside the airport chanting Ayyappa prayers and allegedly issued threats that they would vandalise the car Trupti Desai would attempt to travel in.
Sunil Kumar told an NDTV reporter, “She is an RSS activist...Behind Trupti Desai, there is the thinking of RSS. Because she belongs to the RSS. What is the politics behind this organisation? It is an RSS agenda they are trying to implement in Sabarimala.
He went on to discuss how opposition parties in Kerala were demonstrating against the Kerala government as though it was responsible for this verdict, whereas it was in fact the Supreme Court that was responsible for it.
“The SC verdict clearly says that there is no stay in the verdict. That means, nothing can be done by the government. The RSS, and BJP and the UDF are coming together and fighting against the state government. But it [should not be seen as] a fight against the government, it’s a fight against the Supreme Court. But [these groups] are fighting against the state government.”
In the interview, he spoke about what he sees as the political allegiances of the protesters who have been demonstrating against women’s entry into Sabarimala. “You can’t say that all the agitators are devotees. 99% of the agitators are not devotees, they are hardcore RSS-BJP workers. They have their own politics.”
When the reporters told him that the protesters are saying that they too are devotees, and asked him what their agenda might be, Sunil Kumar responded, “The agenda is clearly the BJP and RSS’ agenda. They use Sri Rama in North Indian states, and here they are trying to use Sabarimala Ayyappan.”