Row over 'sidelining' BJP's lone Muslim candidate at Modi's roadshow in Kerala

Thiruvananthapuram: The absence of the BJP's lone Muslim candidate for the Lok Sabha polls in Kerala at a roadshow of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the state on Tuesday has triggered a row.

During the roadshow conducted in Palakkad on Tuesday, candidates of Palakkad and adjacent Ponnani constituency (Malappuram district), accompanied Modi in an open vehicle. However, BJP's Malappuram candidate Abdul Salam did not find a place in the vehicle.

The CPM triggered a row over this, with party senior leader A K Balan stating that Abdul Salam was deliberately sidelined in Modi's roadshow, reflecting the BJP's attitude towards religious minorities.

However, Salam told a section of the media that there was no plan to accommodate him in the roadshow as his constituency did not have any connection with Palakkad district. He mentioned that the Ponnani candidate, Niveditha Subramanian, could take part in the roadshow as the Ponnani Lok Sabha constituency also includes the Thrithala assembly segment of Palakkad district.

Salam also said that he met Modi at Palakkad and invited him to Malappuram.

Salam, a former vice-chancellor of Calicut University, had contested as a BJP candidate in the 2021 Assembly polls from Tirur in Malappuram. However, he could secure only five per cent of the votes in the Muslim-dominated constituency.