US, UK travel advisory following Sabarimala row a big setback for Kerala tourism, says minister
Kerala has been witnessing widespread violence since Wednesday after two women-Bindu Ammini, 42, and Kanakadurga, 44- entered the hilltop shrine, following which Sabarimala Karma Samithi, an umbrella organisation of Hindu groups, had called a statewide bandh on Thursday.
As fresh incidents of violence continued to mar peace in Kerala following the entry of two women into the Sabarimala temple, state tourism minister Kadakampally Surendran on Sunday said travel advisories issued by the US and UK to its citizens were a real setback to the state.
The foreign offices of the United States and the United Kingdom have issued a travel advisory to its citizens travelling in Kerala to remain vigilant and avoid large public gatherings.
“There have been protests in some towns and cities in Kerala over the issue of women accessing Sabarimala temple. Some public services have been disrupted in the wake of clashes between police and protesters. If you are in the state, remain vigilant and avoid public gatherings,” said the advisory issued by the foreign and commonwealth office. (Follow live updates of Sabarimala temple row here)
“These advisories really humiliated us. More than 10% of the state GDP is based on hospitality industry and there is a concerted effort to target this,” he said.
In the last few shutdowns in Kerala, tourists were targeted in a planned manner and it was a ploy aimed at breaking the back of the state economy, said the tourism minister.
He added that the state, which is a leader in the tourism sector, has never experienced such a situation before.
“During all shutdowns usually tourist vehicles were spared. But this time they were targeted too. This has brought us enough shame. It seems Sangh Parivar outfits are doing it deliberately. Big or small, the state witnessed seven shutdowns in two months. If the situation continues to be like this it will put a death knell to tourism industry,” Surdendran said.
Read: Violence continues to rock Kerala, BJP warns CPI(M) govt as over 3,000 held
He has asked all political parties to evolve a consensus to exempt the tourism sector from all shutdowns.
The state has been witnessing widespread violence since Wednesday after two women- Bindu Ammini, 42, and Kanakadurga, 44 - entered the hilltop shrine, following which Sabarimala Karma Samithi, an umbrella organisation of Hindu groups, had called a statewide bandh on Thursday.
The police arrested over 3000 people on Saturday for their role in protests following the entry of women into the Sabarimala temple. However, violence continued to cripple many areas of the state on Sunday as well.
In Thalassery of Kannur district, houses of an RSS leader as well as a CPI(M) were attacked in the early hours of Sunday. A Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) worker was also stabbed in Palakkad. The police have extended prohibitory orders in three more towns.
A CPI(M) branch secretary has been arrested in connection with an alleged attack on a mosque in Perambra is Kozhikode district. Police said that the leader attacked a mosque with a view to stoke communal trouble in the area.
Also read: PM Modi puts off Kerala visit after Sabarimala violence
The area had witnessed a clash between RSS and CPI(M) workers on Friday and he used this as an opportunity to fan communal trouble, said a senior police officer. The party said it will take strict action against the leader.
