Some Hindus wrote the name of Operation Sindoor and created some creative imagery using flowers in the premises of the Sri Parthasarathy Temple in Muthupilakkad in the Kollam district of Kerala on September 4, 2025, to pay tribute to commemorate Operation Sindoor. However, the celebration attracted action by the Kerala Police, who booked several people for creating the floral art allegedly with the intention of “creating a riot”.
The police registered an FIR, accessed by OpIndia, against 27 people for creating the flower art and erecting flag poles and a flex board bearing the image of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, which, as alleged by the FIR, amounts to instigation of riots.
The seemingly unfair police action was condemned by the Kerala BJP, which termed it “atrocious and unacceptable”. Demanding the withdrawal of the FIR, the party reminded the police that Kerala is not Pakistan, where celebrating the valour of the Indian Armed Forces would constitute a crime.
In Kerala, an FIR has been filed for making a Pookkalam with “Operation Sindoor” on it.
If this happened in Pakistan, it may have been expected but in India, it is atrocious & unacceptable. Operation Sindoor is Bharat’s pride, symbolising the valour of our armed forces. To…
— BJP KERALAM (@BJP4Keralam) September 6, 2025
The current incident highlights the tragic situation in the state ruled by the CPI(M)-led Left Democratic Front, where celebration of the courage of the Indian Armed Forces and the valorous Hindu king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj amounts to “creating riots”. However, this is not the first time that Hindus in Kerala have faced unwarranted police interference in their celebratory activities.
During last year’s Pooram festivities in Thrissur, Kerala Police used excessive force against the devotees and manhandled them. The festivities involving friendly rivalry and competition between different temples were hindered by the Kerala police, who imposed extreme restrictions and erected barricades during temple processions to control the crowd. Due to the police’s excessive restrictions on the festival rituals, one of the participating temples stopped the festivities, and several artists and devotees left.
Similarly, in February 2023, Kerala Police instructed the Vellayani Bhadrakali temple located on the southern outskirts of Thiruvananthapuram in Kerala, not to use saffron decoration during a festival, as they believed that it would create a law and order situation. The police advised the temple to use flags and buntings of all colours, and not just saffron, even though traditionally the temple is decorated with saffron during the festival.
However, the Kerala Police’s concerns regarding a possible ‘law and order situation’ due to the use of saffron flags came true in the case of Attukal Bhagavathy temple in Thiruvananthapuram in February 2024, where CPI workers removed saffron flags and other decorations in the temple, and erected a hoarding glorifying the Kerala CM, covering some of the saffron flags. This led to protests by Hindus, whose religious sentiments were hurt.
The incidents highlight how interfering with the festivities and celebrations of Hindus has become a norm in the Communists-ruled state of Kerala.