Nair community observes 'Save the Faith Day' against Kerala Assembly Speaker's remarks on Lord Ganesha

Thiruvananthapuram: A large number of Hindu devotees and members of an influential Nair community organisation on Wednesday offered prayers at Lord Ganesha temples across Kerala as a mark of protest against state Assembly Speaker A N Shamseer's recent remarks about the Hindu deity.

The special prayers were held in various districts as the Nair Service Society (NSS) had urged the community members to observe "Save the Faith Day" today against the Speaker's comments.

An influential organisation of the forward Nair community, the NSS alleged Shamseer's controversial remarks that Lord Ganesha was a myth and the belief had no scientific basis had hurt the sentiments of the Hindus.

As part of the protest, NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair offered prayers at a temple in Changanassery in Kottayam district.

Later, addressing reporters, Nair said the organisation was viewing Shamseer's statement against Lord Ganesha as "anti-Hindu", and that he had no right to continue in the position of Assembly Speaker.

"It has hurt the sentiments of the Hindu community, and we cannot compromise on the issue," he said.

He further said the Hindu community in Kerala has the tradition of recognising and respecting other faiths and leading a life of peace and harmony without hurting the sentiments of others.

But, if anybody tries to insult the beliefs of the community members in a contemptuous manner, they will face stiff resistance without any compromise, and the present protest is part of that, he said.

Various other Hindu outfits and political parties like the BJP also made their stand clear on the matter, he said.

"The NSS also decided to join hands with such outfits on the matter, because it is a matter of faith," he said.

The objective of the "Save the Faith Day" protest is to offer prayers to Lord Ganesha and seek his blessings and strength to protect the faith, Nair explained.

Reiterating his demand that Shamseer should tender apology to the Hindu community and withdraw his remarks, the NSS general secretary also said faith is the most important thing and that it guides humans.

Nair, on Tuesday, sent a letter to the organisation's taluk union presidents, directing the community members to worship at nearby Lord Ganesha temples.

In the letter, he said though the organisation had urged the Speaker to withdraw the remarks or the government to take action in this regard, the concerned persons had trivialised the matter.

He, however, cautioned the members not to indulge in any provocative or communal actions in this connection.

During an event organised at a school in Ernakulam district recently, Shamseer allegedly accused the Centre of trying to teach children Hindu myths instead of accomplishments in science and technology.

The BJP and right-wing outfits like the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have already launched a campaign against Shamseer, saying they are aggrieved over the Speaker's remarks regarding Lord Ganesha and the mythical 'pushpaka vimanam'.

The ruling CPI(M) had on Saturday strongly condemned the campaign by the Sangh Parivar against Shamseer over his reported controversial remarks.

Misinterpreting myths and beliefs and portraying them as scientific thoughts would only lead to the backtracking of the progress of society and checking the development of science, the CPI(M) had said in a statement here.