Date:08/01/2009 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2009/01/08/stories/2009010853110500.htm

Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram

Pinarayi slams NSS stance

Special Correspondent

‘Attack on CPI(M) immature’

NSS leadership
told to do an
introspection
‘It wants to teach the government
a lesson’

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Communist Party of India (Marxist) State secretary Pinarayi Vijayan has termed ‘immature and politically motivated’ the Nair Service Society (NSS) leadership’s attacks on the CPI(M) and the Left.

In a statement here on Wednesday, Mr. Vijayan said NSS general secretary P.K. Narayana Panicker appeared to have forgotten that the politics of ‘Liberation Struggle’ had lost its relevance and that the NSS leadership could turn the entire community against the CPI(M) and the Left. The CPI(M) State secretary appealed to the NSS leadership to do an introspection on whether its attitude towards the LDF government ever since it came to power was constructive. The government stand on a variety of issues, including that relating to reservation, was in keeping with the changed times.

He said the NSS leadership was trying to see if it could teach the government and its political leadership a lesson. This was nothing but wishful thinking. All political movements should react against this stand of the NSS leadership, he said.

Mr. Vijayan said Communist leaders had nothing against Mannath Padmanabhan, the founder leader of the NSS. He had earned special place in Kerala history with his efforts to rid his community of several evil practices. However, he had subsequently turned out to be the leader of the ‘Liberation Struggle’ launched to unseat the first elected Communist government in the State. This was a dark mark in his career. He had himself realised this later and come forward to defeat the Congress.