THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Mathew Kuzhalnadan MLA said that he is surprised over Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's silence on Union Home Minister Amit Shah's alleged insult to Dr BR Ambedkar. He alleged that the Chief Minister's fear of central investigative agencies targeting him and his family is behind his reluctance to speak out against Amit Shah.

"Pinarayi Vijayan knows what might happen to him and his daughter if he reacts against Amit Shah. The people of Kerala hold Ambedkar in high esteem. The voice of Kerala is heard when the Chief Minister responds. While non-BJP Chief Ministers across the country have strongly reacted to this, there has been no such response from the CPM state secretary or the state secretariat. The enthusiasm the CPM state secretariat displayed for Veena Vijayan is nowhere to be seen when Ambedkar was insulted," said Mathew.

"CPM, which claims to stand for the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe communities, has not come forward criticising Amit Shah for hurting the sentiments of those communities. It's shameful and insulting that the Chief Minister or the CPM hasn't taken a stand on this issue," Mathew Kuzhalnadan told the media.