"Jamaat-e-Islami, PFI are vote bank of LDF-UDF, only BJP can save Kerala": Amit Shah

Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala): Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday launched a sharp attack on the ruling Left Democratic Front and the Congress-led United Democratic Front and said that both alliances are indulging in appeasement politics with Jamaat-e-Islami and Popular Front of India being their major vote bank.

Addressing a gathering of newly elected local body representatives here today, Shah said, "Friends, tell me, can the LDF and UDF protect Kerala from Jamaat-e-Islami, PFI, and the now-growing SDPI? They cannot. PFI, SDPI, and Jamaat-e-Islami are their vote banks; they will never take any action against them."

"If anyone can save Kerala from their divisive agenda, it is the BJP. We abolish triple talaq, and both the LDF and UDF oppose it," he added.


Shah targeted Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and asked if he supports the rights of Muslim women in the state.

"We brought an act to ban Triple Talaq. Both LDF-UDF opposed it. Today, I want to ask the Chief Minister of Kerala a clear question, Do Muslim women have the right to live with dignity or not? 400 acres of land belonging to 600 Christian and Hindu families in Ernakulam have been usurped in the name of the Waqf Board. What are your thoughts on protecting that land?" he asked.

Both LDF and UDF cannot protect Kerala from the "divisive agenda", Shah asserted, saying that they have accepted appeasement as a policy. "When you do that, you don't do justice to anyone. That is why the BJP's policy is justice for all and appeasement to none."

Union Home Minister Amit Shah also criticised the Kerala government's handling of the Sabarimala gold theft case, questioning the state's ability to protect the temple's treasury.

Shah demanded the investigation be handed over to a neutral agency, alleging two Kerala ministers are under suspicion. He accused Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan of failing to ensure a fair probe, saying the BJP will agitate and raise awareness across Kerala until the investigation is transferred.