A day after the Left Democratic Front (LDF) government announced its plan to organise the centenary celebrations of the Vaikom Satyagraha along with the various community organisations, the Nair Service Society (NSS) has decided not to take part in the event.
In a statement, NSS general secretary G. Sukumaran Nair said on Friday that he would not be joining the organising committee of the event as announced by the government. Mr. Nair, Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan, and Kerala Pulayar Mahasabha (KPMS) general secretary Punnala Sreekumar were included in the committee as its vice-chairmen.
“I came to know from media reports that the NSS general secretary will be one of the vice-chairmen of the organising committee. The prevailing circumstances, however, do not warrant any such association and hence the NSS will keep off the committee,” he said.
On Mannam’s path
At the same time, he asserted that the NSS would continue to follow the path laid by Mannathu Padmanabhan in renaissance movements. “The NSS has decided to stay away from the event while taking pride in the centenary celebrations,” he added.
“Both the Vaikom and Guruvayur Satyagrahas had begun as struggles seeking the right to use public roads abutting the temples. But with Mannathu Padmanabhan at their helm, these struggles reoriented towards seeking right for entry into these temples. This was how the renaissance movement took off in Kerala,” said Mr. Nair.
He also said that neither Mannam nor the NSS was accorded the respect they deserved for their roles in Kerala renaissance.
