THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Tuesday cautioned against “organised efforts” to portray the sage-social reformer Sree Narayana Guru, who advocated “one caste, one religion and one God for people”, as a proponent of Sanatana Dharma.
He said the Guru was a saint who reconstructed Sanatana Dharma and trying to fix him in the framework of Sanatana Dhar ma was a great insult to him. Inaugurating a conference held as part of the Sivagiri pilgrimage, Vijayan also supported aproposal from Swami Satchidananda, president of Sree Narayana Dharma Sangham Trust, to abolish the custom prohibiting men from covering their upper torsos while entering temples.
“Attempts to downplay Sree Narayana Guru as a mere religious leader or a religious saint must be resisted. It should be understood that the Guru had no religion and no caste,” the CM said. He asked people to be vigilant against attempts to present the Guru as an advocate of whatever he fought against.
Reducing Sanatana Dharma to casteism won’t work: BJPFormer Union minister V Muraleedharan accused CM Pinarayi Vijayan of insulting Sanatana Dharma at the sacred site of Sivagiri. He claimed the CM’s actions disrespected the followers of Sree Narayana Guru. He said any attempt to reduce Sanatana Dharma to casteism would find no acceptance in Kerala society.
Muraleedharan said Vijayan’s speech at Sivagiri was a continuation of TN deputy CM Udayanidhi Stalin’s call for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma. “Will Vijayan dare to pass such comments on the Holy Quran or any other faith?” he asked.
According to Muraleedharan, the Hindu community in Kerala has faced unprecedented challenges during Vijayan’s tenure. He accused Vijayan of attempting to under mine religious beliefs at sites like Sabarimala and during events like Thrissur Pooram and pointed out that the CM has no moral right to criticize the Hindu community.