Onam festivities took an ugly turn at the Parthasarathy Temple in Muthupilakkad, Sasthamkotta, Kollam, when temple committee office-bearer Asokan C informed Kollam police that RSS activists had laid a controversial pookkalam (floral carpet) at the main pathway to the temple. 

Upon their arrival, police found a floral carpet depicting the RSS flag with the phrase "Operation Sindoor" written beneath it using flowers. The accused also installed a flex board of Chhatrapati Shivaji 50 metres away from the temple. 

This prompted Sasthamkotta police to register a case against 25 RSS members for violating a 2023 Kerala High Court order which banned politically-charged signage within 100 metres of temple premises. One of the accused is an army official with a prior case, as per information received from the police. Authorities believe that the incident was motivated by an intention to cause a riot between political parties. 

According to a PTI report, police have invoked sections 223 (disobeying orders lawfully promulgated by public servants), 192 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), and 3(5) (criminal act committed by several people) under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). 

The BJP condemned the case and claimed that the floral carpet was laid to honour "Operation Sindoor". BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that the legal action "insults" every soldier who defends the nation and asked whether Kerala was being ruled by Jamaat-e-Islami or under Pakistan’s governance. He warned that the party would approach the court if the FIR is not withdrawn immediately. 

The police have made it clear that the case has nothing to do with "Operation Sindoor" and has been registered on the grounds of court order violation. 

Temple committee member Mohanan shared that frequent clashes over flag installations near the temple used to take place during festivals. “To avoid such confrontations, we approached the High Court, which in 2023 banned any decorative items, including flags, near the temple compound," he said.

"We have full respect for Operation Sindoor, but this is not as the accused are portraying it,” the office-bearer said.