Several Hindutva social media accounts, including those of Union ministers and propaganda websites, have faced allegations of disseminating misinformation and promoting Islamophobia in the aftermath of a blast at a Christian prayer gathering in Kochi, Kerala, where three people killed.
The explosions, which also left several critically injured, took place where thousands of members of the Christian denomination Jehovah’s Witnesses had gathered for a prayer meeting on Sunday.
Despite Dominic Martin, an estranged member of Jehovah’s Witnesses, surrendering to the police and confessing his involvement in the blast, the saffron politicians falsely attributed the blast to the ongoing Israel-Palestine issue.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday slammed senior BJP leader and Union Minister Rajeev Chandrasekhar for his social media posts criticising him over the blast, saying it was part of his communal and anti-Muslim stand.
Without naming Chandrasekhar, Vijayan during a brief press meet, read out the English and Malayalam statements by Chandrasekhar posted on his X (formerly Twitter) account.
“Dirty shameless appeasement politics by a discredited CM (and HM) @pinarayivijayan besieged by corruption charges. Sitting in Delhi and protesting against Israel, when in Kerala open calls by Terrorist Hamas for Jihad is causing attacks and bomb blasts on innocent Christians,” the minister posted on social media earlier in the day after the reports about the blasts came out.
“This is a highly prejudiced approach with a clear intention to target a particular community. It is part of their communal agenda,” Vijayan said.
“On what basis has he made these statements? Was he in possession of any sensitive information that prompted him to make such a statement? This is a grave issue. People should not be misled. We will take this on legally,” the Chief Minister said.
In a post on X, CPI(M) MP John Brittas, in response to Chandrasekhar, said, “A person named Martin who was previously with the same organisation has surrendered and investigation is on but am aghast to see foregone conclusions being drawn by important functionaries. Kerala may disappoint them again.”
Indirectly attacking other BJP leaders who also responded on similar lines, Pinarayi Vijayan said those who were with the union minister also came out with similar statements.
Union Minister and senior BJP leader V Muraleedharan called for a probe into “terror activities against Christian gatherings.”
Kerala BJP president K Surendran also said the incident should be seen in the backdrop of the “pro-Palestine and pro-Hamas stance taken by the mainstream parties in the state.”
Amit Malviya, the in-charge of BJP’s National Information & Technology Department and a serial hate-monger in social media, on Sunday alluded to the pro-Palestine stand of the top political parties in Kerala, hinting at the possible link between Muslim appeasement politics and the kalamassery blast.
Meanwhile, a 21-member special investigation team (SIT) of the Kerala Police, headed by ADGP Ajith Kumar, has been constituted to probe the case.
A man identified as Dominic Martin, surrendered before Thrissur’s Kodakara police station claiming that he had set the bomb at the convention centre.
The toll in the blasts rose to three after a 12-year-old succumbed to burn wounds in the aftermath of the blast. Earlier, a woman undergoing treatment for burns also succumbed to her injuries.
Over two thousand members of the Christian denomination Jehovah’s Witnesses were gathering for a prayer meeting during the blasts.
“The blast took place five minutes after the prayer session started. There was a series of blasts from the stage of the convention hall,” an eyewitness told the media.
Hours before the blast, Dominic Martin, an estranged member of Jehovah’s Witnesses, who is in police custody, had posted a video on social media, on why resorted to the act.
He said in the video: “I take the responsibility for the blast. I am posting this video to convince you why I have done it. I had been a member of Jehovah’s Witnesses for the last 16 years. I was not very serious about my faith. I realized that their stand is anti-national and wanted them to rectify it. But they were not ready for it. I could understand this is a wrong ideology. They inject poison into the brains of children that they should not take even a sweet from others. They are asked not to sing the national anthem and join the defence service. They teach that all people of the world would perish and only they will live. What should we do with people who long for the ruin of the entire people in the world. I could not find a solution. I took the decision realizing that this idea is dangerous to the country. Jehovah’s Witnesses, your ideology is wrong. You should help others and respect others. During the floods, you cleaned only the houses of your members. This wrong ideology should be put to an end. The formula of the blast should not be revealed, it is dangerous.”
Police has registered an FIR against unknown persons under Sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the IPC as well as provisions of the Explosives Act and the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).
