Kochi: On Tuesday, a group of seven women, led by Bhumata Brigade leader Trupti Desai, made an unsuccessful attempt to enter the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple, raising many conspiracy theories.
The women claimed that the 2018 Supreme Court's verdict - that allowed entry of women between 10 and 50 years into the sanctum sanctorum - is still in force and they should be allowed to proceed to the hill shrine.
From the airport, the women headed straight to the City Police Commissioner's officer in Kochi with their plea.
However, the police did not entertain their plans and refused to give them the protection. This was in accordance with the government decision not to allow women in the child-bearing age group to visit Sabarimala until the apex court takes decision on a batch of review petitions challenging the verdict.
Tension prevailed in front of the commissioner's office with Sangh Parivar workers tried to stop the women. One of them even threw pepper spray on the face of Bindu Ammini, one of the two women who had visited Sabarimala in January this year following the Supreme Court verdict. Bindu was attacked when she came out of the commissioner's to take some papers from the car.
Conspiracy theories
The incident triggered a series of conspiracy theories with both the ruling CPM and the BJP blaming each other for facilitating the women's visit to Sabarimala.
Arguments and counter-arguments found resonance on social media too.
Senior CPM leader and Minister for Devaswom Kadakampilly Surendran was the first one to allege that the women's plan was part of conspiracy. Kadakampilly said Desai hails from RSS stronghold of Pune and it was the cause of his suspicion. What he meant to say that Sangh Parivar, which wanted to disrupt peace in Sabarimala, was behind Desai's plan.
No untoward incidents have been reported in Sabarimala after the annual pilgrimage season began on November 17.
To buttress his claim, the minister pointed out that only one news channel was aware of Desai's visit, referring to the RSS-backed Janam TV.
Law Minister A K Balan echoed his cabinet colleague. He went on to say that a probe will be conducted into the activists' plan to visit Sabarimala.
BJP camp tried to counter the claim by spreading stories that Balan had met Bindu.
Party leader K Surendran raised this allegation on the Facebook. “Why did Balan explain the reason for meeting Bindu?” Surendran asked. He, however, did not write when did the alleged meeting take place.
Surendran also had other doubts. “ The government's conspiracy behind the arrival of Trupti Desai and team cannot be written off. It needed to be probed if it was part of a ploy to create a good image among the believers and regain the lost support by making an impression that the government is turning away activists from Sabarimala. Why did they play a drama in front of the commissioner's office instead of going directly to Sabarimala?” he asked.
Surendran's post was accompanied by two photographs showing Desai and CPM politburo member Brinda Karat together. These photos, apparently taken during a function at Maharashtra Institute of Technology, had been circulated on social media during last year's Sabarimala protests.
Meanwhile, TV reports said that Bindu had gone to the state secretariat on Monday to meet minister Balan to discuss a few issues regarding her appointment to a government post. Asked about this, Balan clarified that he was not in Thiruvananthapuram on Monday. “I was in Ernakulam and Alappuzha,” he told media.
The turn of events have given enough fodder for the conspiracy theorists on social media. Those who suspected that the incident was BJP's ploy asked how only Janam TV knew about Desai's plans. They tried to find clues in young BJP leader C G Rajagopal's broken answers to Manorama News, who said that they had sources all over.
A few pro-CPM and government social media handles even doubted the genuineness of the chilli spray used by Hindu Helpline leader Sreenath to attack Bindu. They said Bindu's reaction after being attacked was suspicious.
“Sangh Parivar-Janam TV drama – Tripti 2019. What a script!What a cooling chilly spray that soothes eyes and mind,” wrote senior CPM leader and Electricity Minister MM Mani on Facebook.
In response, Congress leader V T Balram launched a scathing attack on for Mani's 'insensitive' comment. "A minister himself trolls a woman who came under attack on the street. Pinarayi government's women empowerment stoops to a new low," he wrote on Facebook.
Congress veteran and Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala wanted to kill two birds with one stone. In a press release, he said both the BJP and CPM were trying disrupt the atmosphere of peace in Sabarimala. He said Desai was associated with the Sangh Parivar and Bindu was a CPM supporter. Was he trying to say that it was a joint operation by the two arch-rivals?
Neither Desai nor Bindu has reacted to the conspiracy theories.
