Global Ayyappa Summit: NSS, SNDP back LDF govt, question Congress stance

Changanassery: The Nair Service Society (NSS) has strongly criticised the Congress for staying away from the Global Ayyappa Summit organised by the Devaswom Board for the development of Sabarimala.

NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair told The New Indian Express that the organisation’s primary aim is to protect Sabarimala’s rituals. He recalled that the NSS was the first to protest the Supreme Court ruling permitting the entry of young women, launching a chanting procession before the Congress and BJP joined after devotees turned out in large numbers.

Sukumaran Nair noted that while the ruling went against temple traditions, the Left Democratic Front government did not enforce women’s entry despite having the authority. Instead, he said, it assured the NSS that the rituals would be safeguarded. The assurance came from Devaswom Minister VN Vasavan with the knowledge of Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, he added. Calling the Sangam a “correction” rather than repentance, Sukumaran Nair accused both the BJP-led central government and the Congress of inaction. “It appears the Congress does not want Hindu votes; perhaps they think minority votes alone will suffice,” he said.

SNDP response

SNDP Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan said the NSS was convinced by the government’s change of stance on the Sabarimala issue, particularly its decision to drop support for women’s entry. He said the NSS’s backing, based on assurances from the Devaswom minister, would benefit the Left in the upcoming local body elections.

Vellappally said the NSS has always taken an issue-based approach, opposing or supporting matters depending on the context. He recalled that while the NSS strongly resisted women’s entry, it later backed the government once it pledged to uphold temple customs. “The NSS trusts the government on this issue. That does not mean it will agree with everything,” he said.

He welcomed the CPM’s shift and said the SNDP shares the same stance. “What is wrong with acknowledging that the government has corrected its stand? We too have demanded that customs be fully followed in Sabarimala,” Natesan said.

He criticised the Congress for failing to take a clear position, echoing Nair’s view that the party had neither supported nor opposed the matter. Vellappally also accused Congress leaders of once attempting to jail him.

While noting the NSS’s stance would help the Left politically, Natesan said holding the Ayyappa Sangam at Pampa created avoidable hardship for devotees. “The CPM and the government have the capacity to gather thousands of people. But there was a lack of imaginative thinking in organising the event,” he said.