BJP has proposed a third front as an alternative to the Congress-led
UDF and the CPM-led LDF and invited various caste and community outfits
to be a part of it.
In recent months, the party has reached out to Vellappalli Natesan, a vocal leader of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP), a platform of the numerically strong Ezhava community.
Natesan has since announced a new party, which is expected to join hands with the BJP.
But the BJP’s attempt to get Prime Minister Narendra Modi to unveil a statue of R Sankar, a former Congress chief minister and SNDP leader, and thus claim him as one of their own ended in a major controversy.
Who is R Sankar?
Sankar was the first Congress chief minister of Kerala since the state’s formation in 1956. He was president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee when the Congress, with the support of the Christian church and the Nair Service Society, launched the infamous Liberation Struggle against the CPI government which led to its dismissal. Sankar became the deputy chief minister when an alliance government of the Praja Socialist Party (PSP) and the Congress came to power after the 1960 Assembly election. When Pattom Thanu Pillai of the PSP resigned in 1962, Sankar was sworn in as the CM. Two years later, the ministry lost majority and Sankar resigned. He retired from electoral politics in the 1960s.
Sankar, however, is remembered more for his work as the secretary of
SNDP and SN Trust. He was secretary of the SNDP for a decade from 1944.
He became secretary of the SN Trust when it was set up in 1952. Under
his leadership, the SN Trust established numerous schools, colleges and
the SN Medical Mission Hospital in Kollam.
Born in April 30, 1909, in a village near Kollam in Travancore (a princely state which constituted the southern part of Kerala) in an influential Ezhava family, Sankar worked as a school headmaster before joining politics in the 1930s. The 1930s were a period of social and political ferment in Travancore. Sree Narayana Guru had established the SNDP and his radical interpretation of the advaita had energised the society, leading to the temple entry proclamation in Travancore in 1936. The abstentation movement in the 1930s for better representation of the backward castes in government jobs too democratised the social space in Travancore. The Travancore State Congress, modelled on the Indian National Congress, was established in 1938. Sankar associated with the state Congress and emerged as one of its popular, young leaders. The Travancore State Congress transformed itself into the Congress after Independence.
Why did the Sankar statue function become controversial?
PM Modi was to unveil a statue of Sankar in Kollam, where the SNDP is headquartered, on December 15. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy was invited to chair the function. Close to the event, Chandy said he was asked by the organisers not to attend. Natesan, the SNDP leader and the main organiser, said it was not necessary for the CM to be present (because the PM was attending) since it was a private function. Natesan said the organisers reserved the right to recall the invite. Both the UDF and the opposition LDF leaders boycotted the function.
In recent months, the party has reached out to Vellappalli Natesan, a vocal leader of the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam (SNDP), a platform of the numerically strong Ezhava community.
Natesan has since announced a new party, which is expected to join hands with the BJP.
But the BJP’s attempt to get Prime Minister Narendra Modi to unveil a statue of R Sankar, a former Congress chief minister and SNDP leader, and thus claim him as one of their own ended in a major controversy.
Who is R Sankar?
Sankar was the first Congress chief minister of Kerala since the state’s formation in 1956. He was president of the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee when the Congress, with the support of the Christian church and the Nair Service Society, launched the infamous Liberation Struggle against the CPI government which led to its dismissal. Sankar became the deputy chief minister when an alliance government of the Praja Socialist Party (PSP) and the Congress came to power after the 1960 Assembly election. When Pattom Thanu Pillai of the PSP resigned in 1962, Sankar was sworn in as the CM. Two years later, the ministry lost majority and Sankar resigned. He retired from electoral politics in the 1960s.
Born in April 30, 1909, in a village near Kollam in Travancore (a princely state which constituted the southern part of Kerala) in an influential Ezhava family, Sankar worked as a school headmaster before joining politics in the 1930s. The 1930s were a period of social and political ferment in Travancore. Sree Narayana Guru had established the SNDP and his radical interpretation of the advaita had energised the society, leading to the temple entry proclamation in Travancore in 1936. The abstentation movement in the 1930s for better representation of the backward castes in government jobs too democratised the social space in Travancore. The Travancore State Congress, modelled on the Indian National Congress, was established in 1938. Sankar associated with the state Congress and emerged as one of its popular, young leaders. The Travancore State Congress transformed itself into the Congress after Independence.
Why did the Sankar statue function become controversial?
PM Modi was to unveil a statue of Sankar in Kollam, where the SNDP is headquartered, on December 15. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy was invited to chair the function. Close to the event, Chandy said he was asked by the organisers not to attend. Natesan, the SNDP leader and the main organiser, said it was not necessary for the CM to be present (because the PM was attending) since it was a private function. Natesan said the organisers reserved the right to recall the invite. Both the UDF and the opposition LDF leaders boycotted the function.
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