NSS stance on Sabarimala shouldn''t be seen as aligning with left: Cong leader Chennithala

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 28 (PTI) Senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala on Sunday said the Nair Service Society (NSS) is a "secular organisation that has always upheld secular values", and its stance on the Sabarimala issue "should not be misinterpreted as a political alignment with the Left." According to Chennithala, the recent statement by NSS General Secretary Sukumaran Nair, that they trust the state government, represents NSS’s stand on the Sabarimala issue.

"We accept that. They have the freedom to take such a stand. At the same time, it was made clear that in politics, NSS will continue its policy of equidistance," Chennithala added.

Chennithala stressed that NSS’s stance on Sabarimala is "not political" and alleged that vested interests were "portraying NSS as moving closer to the Left." "Since the days of the former General Secretary, late Narayana Panicker, NSS has maintained equidistance in politics. That continues even today," he said.

On the UDF’s decision to stay away from the Global Ayyappa Sangamam, Chennithala said, "For the past nine-and-a-half years, the LDF government has done nothing for Sabarimala. Now, with elections approaching, they have staged this event as a political stunt." All India Congress Committee (AICC) General Secretary KC Venugopal said in Alappuzha that the Congress respects all community organisations and is not part of criticisms against NSS.

The BJP’s attempts to embrace community organisations are a PR stunt, he claimed, citing alleged attacks on Christian missionaries in other states.

"The BJP, on one side, tries to embrace them in Kerala and attack them in other states," he further claimed.

Meanwhile, fresh protest posters targeting Nair over his remarks on Sabarimala appeared in various parts of Pathanamthitta district on Sunday.

Posters in Thiruvalla and Peringara, under the banner of the ‘Save Nair Forum’, carried an image from the movie 'Baahubali' showing the character Kattappa stabbing the protagonist, along with a message accusing Nair of having "backstabbed" Ayyappa devotees by supporting the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government.

The protests follow Nair’s recent statement that he trusted the LDF government to preserve the age-old rituals and traditions at the Sabarimala hill shrine, following the Global Ayyappa Sangamam organised by the Travancore Devaswom Board (TDB) with the support of the state government.

Amid the criticism, Kerala Transport Minister K B Ganesh Kumar openly supported NSS General Secretary Nair.

Speaking at an NSS event in Pathanapuram, he said, "Nair is the strongest leader of NSS now. NSS Pathapuram Taluk Union will stand firm in support of the General Secretary." He added, “His views are not political. NSS is going forward with its equidistance policy. But it is not appropriate to say that he should express his opinion." Ganesh said Nair expressed his opinions based on issues faced by NSS and the Nair community, which "should not be considered a reflection of his political stance." Denying any differences within NSS, he said no one questioned Nair over his remarks during a meeting of representatives at its headquarters in Perunna, Changanassery, the previous day. "If four people of a family resigned from NSS, it doesn’t mean that the entire community is going to resign," he said.

He noted that many flex boards against NSS General Secretary Nair had appeared in Pathanamthitta district. "All activities against NSS came from Pathanamthitta. Anyone can print a flex board paying Rs 250," he added. PTI TBA SSK TBA SSK ADB