VD Satheesan dismisses temple visit row, slams previous government

Keralam CM VD Satheesan rejects allegations over his Guruvayur Temple visit and slams the previous govt on the Malayidamthuruth eviction issue. He was recently sworn in as CM after the UDF's victory in the 2026 Assembly elections.

CM Responds to Allegations

Keralam Chief Minister VD Satheesan on Monday rejected allegations circulating after his visit to Guruvayur Temple, clarifying that only a limited number of people accompanied him and that he followed all prescribed darshan rules. Responding to the controversy, Satheesan said, "The claims being spread after my visit to Guruvayur Temple are false. Only four people were with me. I know that VIP darshan is not allowed on Sundays. I had taken a ticket for the darshan."

He also spoke about the Malayidamthuruth town eviction issue, criticising the previous government's handling of the matter. He said, "The previous government did not take any action on the eviction issue at Malayidamthuruth. Those who never intervened even when authorities came 14 times to evict people are now coming forward." Assuring support for affected residents, he added, "The people there will not be left on the streets. The UDF government does not have an approach of throwing people out onto the streets."

Meetings with Congress Leadership

Earlier, VD Satheesan met with Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Delhi on Saturday as a part of his first visit since assuming office.

The Keralam CM earlier met with Congress National President Mallikarjun Kharge and Congress general secretary (organisation) KC Venugopal.

UDF Returns to Power in Keralam

Congress leader VD Satheesan was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Keralam last week, officially bringing the Congress-led UDF back to power after a ten-year hiatus, following their landslide victory in the 2026 Assembly elections.

The ceremony saw a massive turnout of top political heavyweights, signalling the national significance of the UDF's victory. The event was attended by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Rahul Gandhi, MP Priyanka Gandhi, and General Secretary KC Venugopal. It included Congress Chief Ministers and Deputy Chief Ministers like Siddaramaiah (Karnataka), alongside Deputy CM DK Shivakumar, Revanth Reddy (Telangana), and Sukhwinder Singh Sukhu (Himachal Pradesh). Former Keralam CM Pinarayi Vijayan, former Assembly Speaker AN Shamsheer, Keralam BJP President Rajeev Chandrasekhar, and CPI leader Binoy Viswam also attended the swearing-in ceremony.

Alongside Satheesan, a 20-member Cabinet took the oath. Satheesan noted that government formation was completed in under 24 hours, the fastest in Kerala's history, while carefully managing regional and social demographics. (ANI)

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