While Hindu, Muslim and Christian organisations have, by and large, decided against the opening of places of worship, the Devaswom Board has decided to open temples under its control.

Most of the Hindu organisations including the Hindu Eikya Vedi and the Nair Service Society, have strongly opposed the Board’s decision. Opening of temples at this juncture when the State is witnessing an alarming increase in covid cases, they felt, would be a recipe for disaster.

The State BJP leaders who remained tight-lipped over the decision in the beginning, suddenly opposed it. The Government is deliberately allowing the Devaswom Board to open the temples, and playing politics, they alleged.

While the Government readily agreed with the decision of the Christian and Muslim organisations not to open places of worship, it has sought to score political brownie points by permitting the Devaswom Board (DB) to open temples under its control. The BJP leaders allege that the Government is doing this because its coffers are empty and is badly in need of funds. The DB, they say, is headed by ‘communist leaders’ and hence its move to implement the LDF Government’s decision in the matter.

The Government has defended its decision by pointing out that the decision to open places of worship has been taken by the Modi Government, and that it is only implementing its directive in the matter. If the BJP leaders have any objections, they should take up the issue with the Centre instead of criticizing the Kerala Government. The Hindu organisations’ plan to create a Sabarimala agitation-type situation won’t succeed, LDF leaders point out.

The principal opposition party in the State, Congress, seems to be in favour of the move to open temples. While the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) is yet to react officially, party spokespersons have made a strong pitch, in TV channel debates, for allowing devotees to visit temples, adhering strictly to the guidelines governing the opening up of places of worship like social distancing and wearing of masks.

The LDF Government needs to handle the sensitive issue carefully in view of the strong opposition of the Hindu organisations. It should not repeat the mistake it made while tackling the Sabarimala agitation. It should then have allowed the Devaswom Board to take its own decision in the matter. It failed to do that, and had to pay a heavy price in the Lok Sabha elections. The LDF managed to win only one seat in the LS polls.

Surprisingly, it was the Congress which benefited the most from the Sabarimala agitation although the BJP was expected to become its main beneficiary.

The Congress, it seems, is hoping to repeat that performance in the Assembly elections next year, and before that, in the local bodies polls scheduled to be held in October this year. That explains its stand that the temples should be opened and the devotees should be allowed to have darshan. The party’s strategy has been formulated clearly with an eye on the Hindu vote.

The Government should, therefore, withdraw its decision to allow the DB to open temples under its control. The wiser course would be to deny both the BJP and the Congress an opportunity to whip up emotions on the issue and make political as well as electoral gains. The LDF Government has been bitten once in the past. It should be twice shy while handling a sensitive issue like the opening up of temples. The need of the hour is to concentrate fully on the battle against the dreaded virus and arrest the dangerous drift towards a community spread of covid-19. Politics can wait. Otherwise, the bells would toll, once again, for the LDF. (IPA Service)