Thiruvananthapuram: Newly-elected Opposition Leader V D Satheesan’s criticism of the religious and community organisations appears to have irked the Nair Service Society (NSS), a dominant organisation of the upper-caste Hindu Nair community.
Satheesan, after taking over as the leader of opposition recently, said that politicians should not be subservient to community leaders.
In a statement on Tuesday, NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair said Satheesan began criticising religious and community organisations after he was assured of the opposition leader's post.
He said Satheesan had visited the NSS headquarters before the election and sought the organisation's support. "He had spent one hour at the NSS headquarters. Later, he sought support from the Taluk and unit committees. He is now making substandard allegations against the same organisation. This is unjustifiable," he stated.
"The Congress has been tolerant towards all religious and community organisation. The party's leadership should critically analyse Satheesan's remarks," he stated.
Nair said religious and community organisations do not have the right to interfere in the decision making process of the political parties. "But political parties should realise that we have the right to analyse their functioning and air opinions," he said.
He said NSS is curious to know Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee's stand on Satheesan's remarks and the Sabarimala issue.
"NSS has not taken a stand against a particular political party in the election. All parties sought our support in the election," he said.
Memories of 2014
The attack on Satheesan brought back memories of the 2014 incident in which Nair had reportedly snubbed senior Congress leader V M Sudheeran during his visit to NSS headquarters.
The incident had made huge headlines.
Sudheeran, who was appointed the new chief of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC), wanted to pay homage to NSS founder Mannthu Padmanabhan.
But Nair was conspicuous by his absence when Sudheeran turned up at the Mannam Samadhi. This angered Sudheeran. He offered floral tributes and left the place without meeting Nair.
