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The controversy over the breaking of the <keyword id="6384180" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="sabarimala">Sabarimala</keyword> <keyword id="6355287" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Temple">temple</keyword>'s culture and tradition continues to rage and is even now the most discussed election issue in Kerala as seen from the statements of various top political leaders, who came to cast their votes on Tuesday. The <keyword id="6930180" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Sabarimala-temple-issue">Sabarimala temple issue</keyword> was raised by Sukumaran Nair, general secretary of the powerful Hindu Nair community's social and cultural organisation -- <keyword id="378621" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="Nair-Service-Society">Nair Service Society</keyword>. Soon after casting his vote at Changnacherry in Kottayam district, Nair said what he could sense is that the people in the state want a change in governance and want an outfit which will uphold social justice and secular credentials. "The Sabarimala temple issue continues to rage as believers are angry," said Nair. It was in 2018 that the apex court ruled that the temple should be open to all women irrespective of the age group as until then the temple tradition was that no women in the age group 10 to 50 be allowed entry. Following the verdict, the Vijayan-led government floated a renaissance movement, much to the anguish of the believers of Lord Ayyappa, the deity at the Sabarimala temple, and even went to the extent of providing security to two activist women to pray at the temple by providing <keyword id="6369752" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Police-Security">police security</keyword>. The temple town then became a battle ground after believers in large members resisted attempts by the police to take women in the hitherto banned age group. This temple issue came as a setback for Vijayan in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls when he won only one of the 20 Lok Sabha seats in Kerala. On Tuesday, after casting his vote at Kannur, Vijayan when asked about Nair's Sabarimala temple issue said, "it's not just Ayyappan alone, all God's are supporting the Left," said Vijayan, who was accompanied by his wife Kamala Vijayan. And then came statements from the Congress leaders who condemned this sudden U-turn by Vijayan. Reacting to Vijayan's sudden love for Lord Ayyappan, Chennithala laughed and said it was strange to hear an atheist's sudden love for Ayyappan. "Vijayan will get the wrath of Ayyappan as he destroyed the sanctity of the famed Sabarimala temple," said Chennithala. Two time former Congress Chief Minister <keyword id="137100" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Oommen-Chandy">Oommen Chandy</keyword> said Vijayan's statement will be taken with a pinch of salt by the people as it has no sum or substance. "The first thing he did was to file a fresh affidavit and it was done after withdrawing our affidavit, and it was clear that he was against the existing traditions of the temple. When the apex court verdict came, he said he will abide by the verdict. Soon he led a renaissance movement and when no women came to visit the temple, police forcefully took two women to the temple and the culture and traditions were broken. And on election day Vijayan has made a huge U-turn and this would be dismissed by every devotee as nothing but a bluff," said Chandy and added the Congress-led <keyword id="6361745" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="udf">UDF</keyword> will win a resounding victory. Union Minister of State for External Affairs V.Muraleedharan laughed at the statement of Vijayan and said it's high time that the CPI-M be wound up as their ideology has been thrown out of the window. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/news/restaurants-in-maharashtra-are-staring-at-a-slow-death-as-another-lockdown-threatens-to-kill-their-business/articleshow/81924727.cms">Maharashtra restaurant owners fear the current lockdown could be the final nail in the coffin for their business</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/earth-isnt-the-only-planet-with-rain-and-it-could-be-the-key-to-finding-a-habitable-planet-outside-the-solar-system/articleshow/81926108.cms">Raindrops on other planets could be key in search for life beyond the solar system</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/business/corporates/news/tcs-hcl-tech-infosys-q4-earnings-preview-and-guidance/articleshow/81908765.cms">Record breaking quarter for Indian IT services is a given ⁠— all eyes are now on guidance</a>

Sabarimala temple continues to be an election issue in Kerala

The opposition Congress-led <keyword id="204591" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="United-Democratic-Front">United Democratic Front</keyword> (UDF) Monday moved a no-confidence motion against the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Left government in Kerala, raising a slew of allegations including the <keyword id="1888344" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="gold-smuggling-case">gold smuggling case</keyword>. Congress legislator V D Satheeshan moved the motion, saying the Chief Minister's office was "hijacked" by the gold smuggling gang. "While the Chief Minister was attending the press conference and saying that everything was fine with the government and was ready to face any probe, his former principal secretary was being questioned by investigating agenciesfor hours," Satheeshan said. He said the ministers and the chief minister were trying to "put all the blame in the gold smuggling matter on the shoulders of suspended senior IAS officer and former IT Secretary M Sivashankar". The state government has been facing severe criticism from the opposition Congress and the BJP, who alleged links of the gold smuggling case accused with the Chief Minister's Office. The state government had earlier suspended Sivashankar, for his alleged links with Swapna Suresh, a key accused in the gold smuggling case involving diplomatic baggage addressed to the UAE consulate here. The Speaker P Sreeramakrishnan has allotted five hours for the discussion on the no-confidence motion, the first against the four-year-old <keyword id="6356705" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="pinarayi-vijayan">Pinarayi Vijayan</keyword> government. Adhering to strict COVID-19 protocols, the Kerala Assembly convened for a day on Monday and passed the Finance Bill 2020-21, which could not be passed after the state budget in February as the House was adjourned sine die on March 13 due to the coronavirus scare. The opposition has been attacking the government on various issues, including the gold smuggling case and Life Mission housing project for the poor since the past few days. In the 140-member house, LDF has 91 members and UDF 45. A no-confidence motion against the government is being brought after 15 years. In 2005, then CPI(M) MLA Kodiyeri Balakrishnan had moved a motion alleging corruption against the Oommen Chandy government. However, the UDF, is in aquagmire as the Jose K Mani faction of its ally Kerala Congress has decided to stay away from the motion owing to a factional feud. The Kerala Congress party has five members, three belonging to party chairman P J Joseph and two of Jose Mani faction. P C George, an independent member, has said he will vote for the motion. BJP has one member-- O Rajagopal. The by-election to the Rajya Sabha seat which fell vacant after the death of sitting member 83-year-old M P Veerendra Kumar, a media baron and veteran socialist, on May 28, is progressing in the Assembly today. The session was to have been held on July 27, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 situation. A medical team conducted rapid antigen tests on the members early in the morning and social distancing in seating arrangements have also been ensured. However, visitors were not allowed for the session. Each member will have a separate seat for the session, and provided with a sanitiser, mask and a pair of gloves and those entering the assembly complex were subjected to thermal scanning. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/india/news/from-priyanka-gandhi-vadra-to-manmohan-singh-these-are-the-stated-views-of-congress-working-committee-members-on-sonia-gandhis-resignation/slidelist/77713740.cms">From Priyanka Gandhi Vadra to Manmohan Singh, these are the stated views of Congress Working Committee members on Sonia Gandhi's resignation</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/politics/india/news/congress-working-committee-cwc-meeting-updates-decision-on-congress-new-president-sonia-gandhi-or-rahul-gandhi/articleshow/77717675.cms">Sonia Gandhi offers to quit, Manmohan Singh holds her back and Rahul Gandhi questions party leaders — the CWC meeting reveals the cracks in Congress</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/environment/news/cognizant-says-it-will-spend-2-7-crore-to-restore-sebakkam-lake-and-help-natural-marshland-pallikaranai-wetland/articleshow/77716094.cms">Cognizant says it will spend ₹2.7 crore to restore one of India's last natural marshlands in Chennai</a>

Gold smuggling, housing projects and other allegations against Pinarayi Vijayan government leads to no-confidence motion by Congress-led opposition

Thiruvananthapuram, June 14 () IT Parks-Kerala has launched a survey to ascertain the demand and expectations of professionals and organisations as part of its #Move2Kerala campaign, which seeks to position the state as a major global digital hub in the post-COVID era. The online survey, available at https://bit.ly/2UB2Ezr. addresses the workforce and entrepreneurs and takes into account the growing trend of re-imagining the workspace that began before the upheaval triggered by the pandemic, with establishments recognizing the potential, including economic advantages, of remote working and work from home. "This survey seeks to gauge the interest and scope of co-working spaces in Kerala to facilitate an effective mix of work-near-home and work-from-home for professionals in various co-working spaces being planned by Technopark", M Sivasankar, Principal Secretary, Electronics and IT, said in a release. Earlier, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan had assured seamless high-width Internet connection for IT sector employees working from home due to restrictions caused by the pandemic. He had also suggested that companies create "work-sharing benches" to pool their human resources. Catering to the demands of home-bound professionals and entrepreneurs, the state has plans to create a network of virtual and physical work-near-home co-working spaces. The IT sector of Kerala is all set to receive a big boost with the commissioning of Kerala Fibre Optic Network, K-Fon, by end of this year. "The Kerala model is already known across the world for being resilient against natural calamities and pandemics, and is considered one of the safest destinations. The working spaces being offered by Kerala are the most ideal and conducive as they lay great emphasis on environmental and sustainable parameters", Sasi Pilachery Meethal, CEO of IT Parks said. The demand for co-working space is set to go up substantially with a steep increase in the number of start- ups, especially in advanced sectors like space technology, robotics, Artificial Intelligence and data analytics, he said. IT Parks-Kerala comprises Technopark here, Infopark, Kochi and Cyberpark, Kozhikode. RRT APR RAVINDRANATH APR RAVINDRANATH

IT parks-Kerala launches survey to ascertain demand in post COVID-19 era

<ul><li>Intense violence has tainted Kerala' politics in recent years.</li><li>Simmering tensions between the UDF, LDF, and the BJP may affect voter turnout.</li><li>If people decide to avoid voting to stay safe, it may skew the results.</li></ul>The southern state of Kerala, famous for its scenic backwaters and high literacy rate, has seen one of the most violent election campaigns in the country. If people decide to sit at home to avoid getting caught in any sort of violence, it may skew the results in favour of one party or the other. <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/elections/lok-sabha-elections-2019/kerala/news/violent-end-to-vibrant-poll-campaign/articleshow/68987461.cms">More than 30 people</a>, including a policeman, were injured at Thiruvalla where the activists of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Left Democratic Front (LDF) clashed on the last day of the campaign (April 21). That was only one of the many violent clashes that have caught headlines in the state that boasts of 94% literacy, according to the 2011 census. Sitaram Yechury, the general secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist), better known by its acronym CPI(M), said that the party had 13 workers in the last one year. However, police <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/kerala-news/kerala-rss-workers-murder-data-reveals-record-of-political-killings-1733728">records verified by NDTV</a> showed that 14 people from the RSS, BJP, and the left parties have been murdered for political reasons since February 2018. The count of similar deaths between 2000 and 2017 escalates to over 170, according to the same report. The increasingly restive political air in Kerala only shows how tight the fight is going to be. 26 million voters are enlisted for voting on April 23, the <keyword id="2211307" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Third-phase-of-polling">third phase of polling</keyword> in the ongoing elections for the Lok Sabha, the lower house of the Indian Parliament. The voter turnout in the state was a record 73.6% in 2014, <a href="https://www.ndtv.com/elections-news/election-2014-kerala-records-73-6-per-cent-voter-turnout-highest-since-1991-556911" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">the highest since 1991</a>. The United Democratic Front led by the Indian National Congress bagged 12 seats while the remaining eight went to the LDF led by the communist party-led coalition. However, the BJP is expected to be a strong contender this time around, more than it has been ever before. The threat from the BJP is seen as the strongest in some regions that have strong Hindu majority, where people are peeved by a 2018 Supreme Court verdict that allowed <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/supreme-court-allows-women-to-enter-sabarimala-temple/articleshow/65989807.cms">women into the Sabarimala Temple</a>. Tradition did not allow women of menstruating age into the temple until the court verdict. The <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/elections/lok-sabha-elections-2019/kerala/news/will-do-everything-to-protect-sabarimala-shah/articleshow/68971697.cms">BJP and its ideological parent, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh</a> (RSS), milked the issue and kept the anger alive to turn it against the incumbent Parliamentarians. Hindus make up for only 54% of the state’s population, according to the 2011 Census, compared to 80% nationally. 26% of Kerala’s population are Muslims and 18% are Christians. However, the RSS has had a strong support base in Kerala for years but the <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/thiruvananthapuram/rss-strengthening-base-in-kerala-number-of-shakhas-rising/articleshow/57147070.cms">hindu natioanlist organisation</a> is now stronger in the state than ever before. The odds of BJP getting more votes than before are higher but <a href="https://www.timesnownews.com/elections/article/opinion-poll-for-lok-sabha-election-2019-live-times-now-vmr-survey-for-bjp-congress-narendra-modi-rahul-gandhi/384850">most opinion polls</a> have still pegged it as a two-way fight between the UDF and the LDF in the state. A big factor working in favour of the LDF is the <a href="https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics-and-nation/kerala-will-set-an-example-in-rebuilding-rehabilitation-pinarayi-vijayan/articleshow/65481744.cms">elevated reputation of state Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan</a>. He won accolades for effectively managing a devastating flood in the state in 2018. The state also has a long history of leftists dominating state politics. Kerala’s first chief minister in 1957, EMS Namboodiripad, was one of the world’s first communist leaders to head an elected government. On the other hand, UDF led by Congress is trying to squeeze the BJP out by supporting the protests against the entry of women into the Sabarimala Temple. “Well, you cannot afford to write off the votes of the majority in times of political interest,” <a href="https://qz.com/india/1601119/election-2019-congresss-tharoor-battles-modis-bjp-in-kerala/">Congress leader Shashi Tharoor</a> fighting to defend the state capital Thriuvananthapuram told Quartz. The margin for error has shrunk significantly for Tharoor who swept the seat with 100,000 more votes than the second candidate in 2009. By 2014, it had shrunk to 14,000 and this time it is expected to be even tighter. Given that tensions are running high, voter turnout may become a deciding factor. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/lok-sabha-election-2019-3rd-phase-polling-live-updates/liveblog/68999100.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink" target="_blank">LIVE BLOG: Voting in 117 constituencies underway</a>

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Sabarimala temple continues to be an election issue in Kerala

IANS

Gold smuggling, housing projects and other allegations against Pinarayi Vijayan government leads to no-confidence motion by Congress-led opposition

PTI

IT parks-Kerala launches survey to ascertain demand in post COVID-19 era

PTI

Voter turnout may be tested in India’s most literate state that has seen one of the most violent election campaigns

Sriram Iyer

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