Pinarayi Vijayan had told state assembly that the BJP might carry out attacks in Kerala.
The "RSS propaganda" on violence will hurt the development prospects of Kerala, not the Left-led government as intended, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan told NDTV today. The state's people, he said, would not buy the propaganda, since Kerala has the best law and order record in the country. But the allegations could harm its investment prospects and tourism industry. "It is not a campaign against Left government, it is a campaign against Kerala, the most peaceful state," he told NDTV.
Mr Vijayan's government has dismissed the emphasis on violence in the state - by the BJP and its ideological mentor Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. The stance, they have maintained, is politically motivated and meant to discredit the Left-led government and divert attention from the graft charges against state BJP leaders.
The Chief Minister broke his silence on the ongoing political violence in the state a day after Union minister Arun Jaitley visited Thiruvananthapuram to meet the family of Rajesh Edavakode, who died recently after his hand was chopped off, allegedly by men linked to the CPM.
During his visit, Mr Jaitley had delivered a scathing criticism of the political violence in the state, saying the way Rajesh Edavakode was killed would even "shame terrorists". He had harsh words for Mr Vijayan's government. Governments, he said, are elected to "improve the quality of life of people" but Kerala had been witnessing "an ongoing saga of violence".
He also dismissed the RSS demand for President's rule in the state, dubbing it a "joke". The RSS, he said, was unconcerned when people in the state were being killed over beef rumours.
Earlier today, the Chief Minister had told the state assembly that the government had "intelligence reports that BJP might carry out attacks in some parts of the state". Precautionary measures have been taken to control this and the government may hand over the case to the Central Bureau of Investigation if necessary.
Echoing Left parliamentarian MB Rajesh, who posted an open letter to Mr Jaitley yesterday on Facebook, Mr Vijayan said data from the National Crime Records Bureau proved that Kerala had the "Number one record" in law and order.
He also took a swipe at the BJP government in Uttar Pradesh, which had recorded far more instances of violence. "The number of cases in Kerala has been decreasing since 2012. There have been no riots. While the number of murder have been 305 in 2016 according to NCRB, the same period in UP has seen 4,732 murders,'' he said.