KOCHI/THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The comments by Kerala High Court sitting judge Justice V Chitambaresh, who said men from the Brahmin community are born twice and those with ‘clean habits, lofty thinking, sterling character, mostly a vegetarian, a lover of Carnatic music rolled into one is a Brahmin’, have snowballed into a controversy, with Minister for SC/ST and Culture A K Balan and cultural leaders reacting sharply.
Addressing Tamil Brahmins’ Global meet in Kochi on Friday, Chitambaresh made the caste-based endorsement. A K Balan said in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday the remarks do not behove a person of Chidambaresh’s stature. “Such statements will convey a wrong message to society. It seems he has spoken about something which is in his mind. I wonder whether he will keep similar feelings while pronouncing judgments,” said Balan.
“As minister, who holds portfolios of Law and Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Backward Classes’ Welfare, I will like to say such a comment was inappropriate,” he said
Justice Chitambaresh had also said caste-based reservation is unnecessary. “It’s now for Brahmins to deliberate whether reservations should be based on community or caste alone,” he said.
Writer J Devika, in a Facebook post, said the judge should be impeached for his remarks. Various Dalit activists have come out against Chidambaresh’s remarks.