Assembly uproar: CM Vijayan mocks opposition MLA''s height, sparks body shaming row

Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's remarks on Wednesday mocking the short stature of an opposition MLA, who, according to him, got into a scuffle with watch and ward staff, invited sharp criticism from Opposition leader V D Satheesan.

He termed chief minister's observation as "body shaming".

Chief minister made the remarks in the Assembly shortly after the Opposition boycotted the proceedings and dramatic scenes unfolded.

Then, there was a scuffle between opposition members and watch and ward staff and shouting between ruling and opposition members over the issue of "missing" gold from the dwarapalaka idols of Sabarimala Lord Ayyappa temple.

Referring to the Opposition protest in the well of the House and their alleged scuffle with watch and ward staff, including women, the chief minister mocked the alleged act of an opposition MLA without naming him.

Vijayan used colloquial language to refer to the MLA's short stature and linked it with his alleged unruly behaviour in the Assembly.

Making fun of the MLA, Vijayan added that it was not by his own physical strength but by relying on the protection afforded to him as an MLA that he had acted.

Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly, V D Satheesan, hit out at the chief minister for his remarks.

"That is a politically incorrect statement. It is body shaming. Calling them progressives is meaningless. They ought to be living in 19th-century Spain," Satheesan told reporters outside the Assembly.

The state Assembly has been witnessing fierce opposition protests over the Sabarimala gold-plating issue.