NEW DELHI: Senior BJP leader K Gopalakrishnan triggered a controversy on Saturday during a bypoll campaign speech in Wayanad, Kerala. He suggested that the Sabarimala temple could be claimed as Waqf land, invoking the legend of Vavar Swamy, a Muslim figure revered by devotees as a companion of Lord Ayyappa.
Speaking in support of the BJP-led Centre's Waqf (Amendment) Bill, 2024, Gopalakrishnan posed a hypothetical situation to the audience. “There is a guy sitting under Lord Ayyappa...Down below the holy 18 steps...Vavar...If this Vavar claims tomorrow that he has given the land to Waqf, then Sabarimala will go to Waqf. Then, Lord Ayyappa will be forced to leave Sabarimala. Should we allow that?," he asked.
Gopalakrishnan drew parallels with Velankanni, a prominent Christian pilgrimage center in Tamil Nadu, implying that it too could face similar claims. He emphasized that the Waqf amendment aimed to prevent such situations.
His remarks come amidst ongoing debate and resentment regarding the Waqf (Amendment) Bill in Kerala. While the ruling LDF and opposition UDF passed a resolution against the bill, Christian groups have expressed support, alleging unfair property claims by the Waqf Board under the existing law.
In support of the bill, the Church has alleged that numerous properties belonging to Christian families for generations in the villages of Cherai and Munambam in the Ernakulam district have been unlawfully claimed by the Waqf Board using provisions of the existing Act.
In Cherai and Munambam villages in Ernakulam district, residents have alleged that the Waqf Board unlawfully makes claim to their land and properties, despite the people having registered deeds and land tax payment receipts.
Recently, the Syro-Malabar Church-backed Deepika daily, in its editorial, attacked the LDF and the UDF, accusing them of passing a unanimous resolution in the state Assembly "to protect the Waqf law without seeing the tears of the affected people."
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