Instead of hitting the streets, the powerful organization of the Nair community will now take the legal route by moving the court. A decision to this effect was taken at a meeting of the NSS board of directors and the executive council – the two highest decision-making bodies of the NSS.

The decision is also in response to the CPI(M)’s steadfast refusal to concede the twin NSS’s demands: either the Speaker tender an apology for his remark against Lord Ganesha or the Government take action against him. What had sparked the row was the Speaker’s address to the school students to promote scientific temper and enshrine science over a literal interpretation of religion in Kannur.

The NSS meeting “strongly disapproves the unresponsive stance adopted by the Government to the controversial remarks made by the Speaker. If this Government is not ready to initiate appropriate steps to de-escalate the issue, the NSS has decided to explore legal options for protecting the faith of the Hindus and has entrusted our legal team with the task," the statement made by NSS supremo G Sukumaran Nair said.

The earlier NSS decision to take to the streets on the issue had run into strong opposition from within the organization itself with some NSS leaders voicing their reservations about the move for an agitation. It was felt that the decision would lead to a violent flare-up and upset communal harmony.

It is heartening to note that wiser counsels prevailed and the organization reversed its ill-thought-out decision to launch a state wide protest. The move comes also in the wake of the BJP-RSS game plan to exploit the issue to pursue their political agenda, with the 2024 Lok Sabha elections less than a year away. There was fear in the NSS camp that the BJP would hijack its agitation plan. The Sangh Parivar was keen, not surprisingly, on cashing in on the issue in an effort to firm up its otherwise weak foothold in the State. But the wise NSS decision has frustrated the BJP-RSS’s plans to use the issue to its advantage.

The CPI(M)’s strong defence of the Speaker also influenced the NSS’s decision to abandon the agitational path. CPI(M) state secretary M V Govindan ruled out an apology from the Speaker claiming that he had said nothing to warrant an apology. The CPI(M)’s central leadership also threw its full weight behind the State CPI(M)’s stand on the issue.

The NSS is also said to be unhappy about the Congress’s stance on the issue. The Congress sought to remain neutral after initially extending its support to NSS boss Sukumaran Nair’s standpoint.

Needless to say, the NSS decision has taken the wind out of the Sangh Pariuvar’s propaganda sails. The saffron camp had decided on launching protests and holding large public meetings across the State. But the agitation plan will lack the steam the Sabarimala stir had initially attracted.

All said and done, the NSS stance has come as a reprieve for the Pinarayi Government. It can heave a sigh of relief as the sinister strategy to vitiate communal atmosphere in the state has been decisively defeated. The NSS also deserves praise for refusing to fall into the trap set by vested interests to mar communal amity in the State. (IPA Service)