Thiruvananthapuram: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday strongly criticised what he described as a spate of attacks on members of the Christian community ahead of Christmas in Kerala and several other states across the country.

Referring to an incident in Pudussery in Palakkad district, the Chief Minister said a carol group that included students was allegedly attacked by Sangh Parivar activists. He said that BJP leaders later attempted to justify the incident by claiming that members of the carol group were inebriated. “Such forces will be dealt with firmly. Any action that infringes upon people’s constitutional freedom will not be tolerated,” Vijayan said.

The Chief Minister also said a Christmas programme organised by the postal department in Kerala was cancelled after an RSS-affiliated union demanded that Ganageetham be made mandatory during the celebrations. Following the demand, the Chief Postmaster General decided to cancel the programme altogether, he said.

Vijayan further said that several private schools in the state were being pressured by RSS-linked groups to cancel Christmas celebrations. He said the state government is probing these complaints and warned that strict action will be taken against them.

Speaking to the media, the Chief Minister said such attacks go against the essence of Christmas and referred to the Biblical phrase “Bhoomiyil sanmanasullavarkku samadhanam” (peace for those good graced). He said the incidents were “dimming the light of Christmas” across the country.

The CM also said that members of the Christian community were facing attacks in states including Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Odisha, Chhattisgarh, Bihar and Jharkhand. He criticised the Uttar Pradesh government for cancelling Christmas vacations in schools and instead directing institutions to celebrate the birth anniversary of former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, with student attendance made mandatory. He said Kerala remains “far removed from such practices” and continues to uphold constitutional values of religious freedom.

Walayar mob lynching
The CM said that those responsible for the Walayar mob lynching would be brought to justice and ensured the maximum punishment under the law. He added that the attack was driven by intolerance and said several of the accused had criminal backgrounds and a communal mindset. He accused Sangh Parivar organisations of attempting to introduce a culture of mob violence in Kerala and asserted that such atrocities would not be allowed to take root in the state. “It is up to us to ensure that such acts of violence do not survive on Kerala’s soil,” Vijayan said.

The deceased, Ramnarayan Bhayar (31), a migrant labourer, was allegedly assaulted by a group of local residents at Attappallam in Walayar on December 17. Police said the attack occurred around 6 pm after the group suspected him of theft. Although he was reportedly under the influence of alcohol at the time, no stolen items were found in his possession. Bhayar collapsed after the assault, bleeding from the mouth, and later succumbed to his injuries.

A cabinet meeting held on Wednesday decided to provide ₹30 lakh as financial assistance from the Chief Minister’s Disaster Relief Fund to the family of the deceased. Of the total amount, ₹5 lakh each will be given to the victim’s wife and mother, while ₹10 lakh each will be provided to his two children.

Referring to another incident, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan spoke about a heart transplant conducted the previous day on Durga Kamini, a native of Nepal. The donor was a Chathannoor native who had been declared brain-dead. Vijayan noted that the transplant was performed by doctors at a government hospital in Kerala and that a state government helicopter was used to transport the organ. “We did not look at language, religion, gender or nationality. This is what Kerala stands for. This reflects our humanity, generosity and camaraderie,” the Chief Minister said.