UDF flays yatra; VS Achuthanandan says it’s bid to protect ‘varna’

THIRUVANANTHPURAM: Leader of the Opposition V. S. Achuthanandan on Tuesday said that glimpses of the outdated "chathur varna" system were witnessed during the inauguration of SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellapally Natesan's Samatwa Munneta Yatra in Kasargod.

In a statement here, Achuthanandan said Pejawar Mutt seer Vishwesha Teertha Swamiji who is close to the RSS and VHP had declined to hand over the jatha flag to Vellapally.

Had the swamiji touched Vellapally who belongs to the Ezhava community, even accidentally, he would have felt defiled requiring immediate bath. That's perhaps why he restricted himself to lighting the lamp, the Opposition leader said.

Achuthanandan accused Vellapally of bringing back the practice of untouchability. "I would like to know Vellapally's reaction on this issue," he said.

He said the temples under the Pejawar Mutt Seer in Karnataka still practised untouchablity. "Made snana" is a practice in which lower caste people roll over plantain leaves containing food partaken by "upper caste" people. "Hundreds of people from lower castes participate in the ritual in order to invoke "God's grace and get their problems solved. It is an affront to humanity", he added.

The veteran leader said the presence of the mutt seer in a way displayed untouchability and obscurantism. The swamiji spent just three minutes on the stage.

The Opposition leader said Vellapally who was acting like a "savarna" after making huge money through money laundering, was travelling in a Rs 1-crore-worth caravan along with his wife. He is treating Akkeeraman Bhattathiripad and former chairman of ISRO Madhavan Nair as tenants by not allowing them to travel in the caravan.

The veteran leader said Vellapally's jatha has turned into a "chathurvarna protection yatra". Meanwhile, Congress, Muslim League and CPI stepped up their attacks on Vellapally's yatra. CPI state secretary Kanam Rajendran said the yatra was aimed at causing religious divide in the state.

"At a time when there is need to create unity among different communities, Vellapally is trying to divide people on religious lines," he said.

IUML leader and industry minister P. K. Kunhalikutty called for fighting all forms of communalism, minority and majority, to ensure harmony in the state. Congress vice-president M. M. Hassan accused Vellapally of dancing to the tunes of the RSS.

 

 

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