Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan unleashed a barrage of criticisms on the government of India accusing it of destroying the secular fabric of the country.
Addressing the district conference of the CPM here on Sunday, Pinarayi referred to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), the abrogation of Article 370, and the recent 'hate speech' at Haridwar among other matters to state that the "central govt has shown scant regard for the constitution".
Pinarayi has alleged that the Narendra Modi-led Union government is "anti-people" and that it "does not treat all citizens equally".
"We have witnessed riots and communal violence, in which members of religious minorities have been victims. The RSS and Sangh Parivar promote it ... such activities continue under the Indian government," said Pinarayi.
He said that in India, the choice of food and dress were being turned into "tools of communalism".
"Cow is a harmless being, but several humans are being killed in its name. Almost everything is a tool for communal hatred in their hands," he said.
Pinarayi claimed that his state government was the first in the country to oppose CAA "that is anti-constitutional".
He attacked the abrogation of Article 370, which revoked the special status accorded to Jammu and Kashmir by saying: "One day in the Parliament, the union home minister stands up and takes out a note. What happened next? The special powers given to Jammu and Kashmir were removed and the state itself became nonexistent. This is what is happening in the country."
Pinarayi attacks Rahul Gandhi
The CPM leader has accused the Congress of straying from its secular ideology and "playing to the tune of RSS/Sangh Parivar".
"Congress leader Rahul Gandhi recently said that he is a Hindu and that the country needs a Hindu reign. Congress has been addressing the country since Independence. But have they attempted to set up a Hindu Rashtra before? Now they are abandoning secularism," said Pinarayi.
