The decision of the Congress to withdraw the invitation extended to Kerala Governor Arif Mohammad Khan to inaugurate the K. Karunakaran commemoration on account of his stand on the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) amounted to ‘‘arrogance and fascism,’’ Bharatiya Janata Party leader and former Mizoram Governor Kummanam Rajasekharan said here on Tuesday.
“They should have shown the decency of giving him an opportunity to speak. We are a pluralist nation. You can agree or disagree. Why are you afraid,’’ Mr. Rajasekharan asked the Congress while inaugurating a seminar ‘CAA: What is the Truth?’ organised by the BJP.
Mr. Khan was to have inaugurated the function commemorating the former Chief Minister on Monday evening. The invitation was abruptly retracted and Leader of Opposition Ramesh Chennithala had written to the Raj Bhavan about the decision of the organisers.
In withdrawing the invitation, the Congress leadership and Mr. Chennithala had, in effect, insulted the office of the Governor, Mr. Rajasekharan said.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and Mr. Chennithala, who had joined hands in opposing the CAA, should introspect whether they should become tools of a “foreign conspiracy to foment unrest in the country”, he said. They have the constitutional responsibility of respecting an Act passed by the Parliament. “They are challenging the rule of law and the Constitution,” he said.
The Chief Minister and the Leader of Opposition were hiding the truth about the CAA from the people. They were engaged in a “misinterpretation and misinformation’’ campaign. “We don’t need their interpretations, but the people should know what exactly does the Act say,” he said.
The decision to extend certain concessions to persecuted minorities from three countries was purely a humane gesture which scarcely affected the citizenship of any Indian, Mr. Rajasekharan said.
M. Abdul Salam, former vice-chancellor, Calicut University, said the protests against the CAA were based on hollow arguments. Mulsims in India were totally safe, but they were being misled by vested interests on the issue, he said.
BJP district president S. Suresh presided.
