BJP national president Amit Shah may visit Sabarimala during the upcoming Mandalakalam pilgrimage season to worship at the Lord Ayyappa temple. However, a date had not been finalised.
Shah, in his declaration at Kannur on Saturday, had fully endorsed the BJP state unit's move to launch an agitation against the Supreme Court verdict that allowed women of child-bearing age to enter the Sabarimala shrine. The BJP sees the Sabarimala issue as an opportunity to make electoral gains in Kerala.
BJP leaders in Kerala wanted Shah to attend the conclusion of the party's November 8-13 Rath Yatra (chariot journey) in Pathanamthitta. As the demand was made, Shah himself suggested that he would visit the Sabarimala temple and offer worship. The Rath Yatra would conclude with a rally of women.
Shah proposed that the Sabarimala protest should be staged under the banner of the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) that the BJP leads. Thushar Vellappally, state president of NDA ally BDJS, attended the discussions, which Shah had with BJP state president P.S. Sreedharan Pillai and leaders V. Muraleedharan, P.K. Krishnadas and M. Ganesh. The Rath Yatra will be led by Sreedharan Pillai and Thushar.
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The BJP is fielding Thushar to counter his father, Vellappally Natesan, chief of the SNDP, who rejected Shah's plea at Sivagiri to bring in the SNDP into the Sabarimala agitation.
Sreedharan Pillai will make a bid to seek the support of powerful minority leaders for the agitation.
Breakthrough with royals
The leaders of the Sabarimala Karma Samiti and the Pandalam Palace, which is traditionally associated with the temple, also called on Shah. BJP state leaders claim that the visit of the royals, seeking Shah's help, was a huge gain as they used to ally with the CPI(M).
Former Kerala Police chief T.P. Senkumar also called on Shah, but hasn't joined the BJP officially.
Shah left Sunday afternoon to attend the Yuva Morcha conference in Hyderabad, along with P.K. Krishnadas, who looked after Telangana for the BJP.
Via onmanorama