Row over P. Jayarajan’s Kodungallur temple visit continues; BJP criticism meets researcher’s clarification

The controversy surrounding Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] leader P. Jayarajan’s visit to the Kodungallur Sree Kurumba Bhagavathy temple shows no signs of easing, with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stepping up its criticism even as a researcher has come forward with a detailed clarification.

BJP leader B. Gopalakrishnan, in a Facebook post on Wednesday, questioned the intent behind the visit.

“No one has said that communists are barred from visiting temples. But why go secretly? Why circle the temple and offer ritualsthrough others without anyone knowing?” he wrote.

He also made a veiled reference to recent temple visit by caretaker Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan’s son.

Meanwhile, writer and researcher Vinil Paul on Wednesday offered a sharply different perspective, also through a Facebook post. He said the visit was being misrepresented as an act of faith, while it was actually part of an ongoing research project.

“The attempt to portray the Kodungallur visit as a religious pilgrimage is politically motivated,” he wrote. “Mr. Jayarajan and I have visited several temples as part of a study to understand how local deities and folk worship practices in Kerala were absorbed into the Brahmanical framework.”

According to him, the fieldwork spans multiple districts and focusses on temples that have historically resisted Brahmanical dominance. “This is not a one-time visit but part of a continuing research effort. I have accompanied him during parts of this fieldwork,” he noted.

Mr. Paul added that sites like Kodungallur are not merely places of worship but “historical texts” that reveal layers of Kerala’s caste politics, cultural transitions, and power structures.

“Critiquing Sanatana dharma is not an attack on believers. It is about questioning historical structures that justified caste hierarchy, inequality, and the marginalisation of women,” he wrote.

As political reactions and academic explanations continue to collide, the debate around Mr. Jayarajan’s visit has now expanded beyond a single incident into a wider discussion on religion, politics, and history in Kerala.