CHANGANASSERY: The Nair Service Society leaders on Saturday criticised the policies of the Centre and the state governments and said that the latest instance of appeasing the Christian and Muslim communities was the state government's order to implement the UGC regulations and bring in a different pattern on the constitution of teacher selection committees for minority-run and majority communities-controlled educational institutions.
NSS general secretary PK Narayan Panicker and secretary G Sukumaran Nair said this on the basis of the three resolutions adopted by the delegates' session organised in connection with the Mannam Jayanti on Saturday.
Interestingly, the LDF Government in the state has also toed the Centre's line on placating the minorities, while taking an opposite political stand in public, they said. The stance on economic reservation for the poor among the forward castes is also no different, they said.
The NSS leaders had a dig at the Church and the Christian leadership in the state for not raising voice for economic reservation and felt that it might be owing to the fact that they enjoyed much rights as minorities.
Asked whether the NSS is aware that Union HRD Minister Kapil Sibal has stated the other day that directives have been issued for the implementation of 5 percent economic reservation for the poor among forward castes in all the institutions accredited to the All-India Council for Technical Education (AICTE), the leaders replied in the negative.
"One can also see the violent fallout of the special reservation granted recently to a community in Rajasthan," Panicker said.
On who all would be the forces and organisations with which the NSS will have a tieup in the event of launching a struggle on discrimination against Hindus, Panicker and Sukumaran Nair said that it has not been decided so far. But, the BJP line cannot be accepted, they clarified.
The resolutions adopted at the meet demanded the implementation of recommendations of the national commission for economic reservation for the poor among the forward castes, ensuring status quo for appointment in the aided educational institutions irrespective of majority and minority status and modifying the proposal for school management committees in the central law as advisory panels.
"The political parties and leaders who turned their back towards the NSS pleas will be defeated at the hustings in the coming Assembly polls, if necessary," the NSS leaders said. They added that the NSS was not at all standing in the way of ensuring the constitutionally guaranteed rights and protection for minorities. "But the governments are racing to shower favours to the minorities, when even the latter is not asking for it in the state."
Sukumaran Nair said that one has to keep in mind that minorities in the state are, in fact, a majority in the education sector.
Against around 500 institutions run by the majority Hindu community, Christians and Muslims together are in control of over 1,000 institutions in the state.
On the Congress leadership's intervention on the issue of economic reservation, they said that nothing materialised after the parleys during the visit of an emissary and the recently held plenary session of the AICC was also silent on the topic.
The resolutions were presented by NSS treasurer P Narendranathan Nair, secretary G Sukumaran Nair and director board member NV Ayyappan Pillai and seconded by director board member Chithara S Radhakrishnan Nair, executive council member Nedumangad R Gopalan Nair and director board member KN Viswanathan, respectively.
NSS president PV Neelakanta Pillai presided over the delegates' session. Earlier in the day, floral tributes were offered at the Mannam Samadhi at Perunna by delagates and dignitaries, including Devaswom Minister Kadannapally Ramachandran, Opposition Leader Oommen Chandy and KPCC general secretary MM Hassan.