The head of the PC Fabien Roussel criticized the mayor of Grenoble (EELV) Eric Piolle on Wednesday for having reignited the controversy over the burkini, the socialist senator Laurence Rossignol accusing him frontally of “polluting the campaign” of the legislative elections and seeing it “a victory fundamentalists”.

The Grenoble city council gave the green light on Monday to wearing the burkini in municipal swimming pools, after a tight vote on a divisive theme, at the heart of a national controversy for weeks.

“I regret that the mayor of Grenoble Eric Piolle makes it a national affair, exploits this affair for internal political reasons, of the Greens congress” or other, lamented on Europe 1 the national secretary of the PCF Fabien Roussel.

“I am against the fact that a swimming pool, a public service, promotes a religious claim”, further criticized the former presidential candidate, who would have “favored the withdrawal of this deliberation which had nothing to do there, because, at the very least, we talk about it with all the mayors of its territory and we avoid instrumentalizing such a subject”.

“What a moron in every way!” For her part, she was indignant on France 2 Laurence Rossignol, about Eric Piolle, who like her supports the agreement of the New Popular, Ecological and Social Union (Nupes).

“Usually it is said that the far right brings to election campaigns, the burkini, the burqa, the veil, and we think that it pollutes the political debate, this time it does not come from the far right , it comes from an ecological mayor of Grenoble, on the timing, I am flabbergasted, it pollutes the countryside, and then on the merits, he is wrong”, explained Ms. Rossignol, who had first supported the candidacy of Arnaud Montebourg in the presidential election before joining that of Anne Hidalgo.

According to Ms. Rossignol, Piolle “fell into a trap with visibly great happiness” by yielding “to religious and political demands that emanate from associations or groups that are quite a minority in religion” and “it is a victory for the fundamentalists”.

“The Republic must resist religious claims because it is endless and it aims to destabilize it”, warned the senator from Oise, stressing that these associations “have an agenda, today the burkini, then there is the repeal of the 2004 law on the headscarf at school, finally the obligation of neutrality of civil servants”.

According to her, “there is a denial of what the religious offensive is in this country” and “it is a debate that is on the left, it has to be purged at some point or another, and there , that doesn’t help.”

According to an Ifop poll for Le Point carried out from May 13 to 16, 69% of French people say they are against the possible legalization of the burkini. In detail, 76% of RN voters are opposed to it, 71% of voters of the presidential majority and 58% of the Nupes electorate.

05/18/2022 10:48:16 –         Paris (AFP) –         © 2022 AFP