The ashram of a priest in Kerala, who supported the Supreme court verdict allowing the entry of women of menstruating age in Sabarimala temple, was attacked by some unidentified people on Friday.
The head of the ashram, Swami Sandeepananda Giri, was also threatened for supporting the entry of women of all ages in the temple.
On Saturday morning, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan visited the ashram and by condemning the attack, he said, "People use physical power when they fail to deal ideologically. We won't allow such forces to take law in their hands. Communal forces who were against Swami's support in the matter have attacked his Ashram."
Police said that two cars and a scooter, which belonged to the ashram, were also set ablaze by the attackers.
Loknath Behra, the Kerala Director General of Police, said that a special probe team under Thiruvananthapuram police commissioner will be appointed to investigate the attack.
Kerala Finance Minister Thomas Isaac, who visited ashram with the CM, has blamed RSS for the attack and said it was an attempt to murder.
Bhartiya Janta Party (BJP) has denied the allegations. BJP leader PK Krishnadas told Hindustan Times, "We had no role in the attack on Swami Sandeepananda's ashram. The CPI(M) stage managed the attack to distract attention from Sabarimala issue."
