Thrissur Pooram fiasco: Case against Union Minister Suresh Gopi for arriving in ambulance

Thrissur: A case was registered against Union Minister Suresh Gopi on Sunday for arriving in an ambulance at the Thrissur Pooram grounds on April 20, 2024. The actor-turned-politician faces charges under the IPC and the Motor Vehicles Act for reckless driving, violating traffic restrictions imposed by the police, breaching one-way limits on Swaraj ground, and using a vehicle designated for patient transport. The charges were slapped under IPC 279, 34 and Motor Vehicle Act 179, 184, 188, 192. The second accused in the case is Abhijit Nair, a coordinator at Varahi PR agency, while the ambulance driver is listed as the third accused.

Union Minister Suresh Gopi previously acknowledged using the ambulance to reach the Pooram venue, citing health issues. “I struggled to walk through the crowd due to leg pain, so some young people without any political agenda helped me into the ambulance,” he explained.

Initially, Gopi denied using an ambulance and even called for a CBI investigation into the matter. However, BJP district president KK Aneesh Kumar clarified that while Gopi travelled to the city by car, he used the ambulance for a short distance to access the Pooram venue due to restrictions on private vehicles.

Gopi suggested that the controversies surrounding the Thrissur Pooram disruptions were meant to divert attention from the Karuvannur Cooperative Bank scam. “I don’t need to explain further. Let the CBI investigate—if they dare. If the truth comes out, their entire political strategy will crumble,” he said.

The Thrissur Pooram incident has since sparked political debate in the state. Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan stated that the festival and its rituals proceeded without disruption, while Congress and the CPI, a Left ally, alleged that the disruptions were staged to evoke Hindu sentiment in favour of the BJP’s Thrissur Lok Sabha campaign.

The controversy began with police interventions in Pooram rituals this April. For the first time in its history, the fireworks display—a major attraction traditionally held in the early morning—was postponed to broad daylight the following day, disappointing festival enthusiasts.