CPI(M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury hit out at the Congress over its stand on the Sabarimala temple issue, saying it would only help the campaign of the RSS-BJP combine against secular-democratic values.

He said while the Congress' central leadership had welcomed the SC judgment as a progressive step, its Kerala unit had opposed the verdict. Yechury said the Congress' stand could not be accepted by any political party which believed in secular and democratic values. "The Kerala unit of Congress is opposing the implementation of the verdict and is protesting along with the BJP. By such a stance the Congress is only helping the RSS-BJP combine campaign against secular-democratic values and the right to equality enshrined in the Constitution," he told reporters.