The Kerala Assembly Speaker and CPI(M) state committee member, A N Shamseer, has been facing the heat over his recent remark about the Hindu deity Lord Ganesh, with the BJP and other Sangh Parivar outfits launching a campaign to target him. In an escalation of the row, the Nair Service Society (NSS), an influential organisation of Kerala's upper-caste Nair community, Tuesday urged its members and units to observe August 2 as “Save the Faith Day” as a mark of protest against Shamseer's remark. While inaugurating an education project at Kunnathunad Assembly constituency in Ernakulam on July 21, Shamseer said science should be promoted in education to solve all present-day problems. “During my school days, it was the Wright brothers who invented aircraft. But now Wright brothers is not the correct answer as it is Pushpak Vimana in this Hindutva time. Instead of science, myths are being promoted in textbooks. There is a bid to teach that Kauravas (of Mahabharat) were born as a result of infertility treatment. In medical science, plastic surgery is a new invention. But what is being taught is that plastic surgery existed from ancient times. that it was Ganapati with a man's body and an elephant’s face. Instead of science, such myths are being promoted,’’ he purportedly said. Condemning Shamseer's remark, the BJP and its frontal organisations have held protests across Kerala, lodging complaints with the police against him. Scores of the BJP and Yuva Morcha activists marched to the CPI(M) leader's office in Thalassery in Kannur, raising slogans against him. Shamseer is a legislator from the Thalassery. The BJP, in a complaint to the Thiruvananthapuram city police, alleged that Shamseer made the remark “demeaning” the Hindu faith with a bid to foment communal tension. State BJP president K Surendran charged that Shamseer “insulted” Lord Ganesh. “The CPI(M) approach to disparage the Hindu rituals and faith is a matter of concern. A person with anti-Hindu approach holding the Speaker’s office does not bode well for the democratic system,’’ he said. The ruling CPI(M) has, however, strongly backed Shamseer, the 46-year-old party firebrand, over the controversy. Throwing the CPI(M)'s weight behind Shamseer, the party's Kannur district secretary M V Jayarajan said the Speaker has not insulted any religion or faith. “The allegation is baseless. It was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who had delivered a speech to scientists in such a manner to promote superstition. The Prime Minister had stated that plastic surgery existed in the past. Shamseer had stated that the argument of the Prime Minister was baseless. We are against promoting superstition,’’ said Jayarajan. In a letter sent to all its units, NSS general secretary G Sukumaran Nair said the Speaker's remark was “painful”. “We had sought that the Speaker withdraw his statement or the government take action on his statement. But, those concerned have trivialised the issue, which is highly deplorable. As part of protecting our faith, all NSS workers and faithful should make offerings at the nearest temples, where Lord Ganesh is the deity, and special prayers should be held for protection of the faith. At the same time, there should not be any provocative action,” he stated. Shamseer was elected as the Speaker of the Assembly last year. A protégé of former CPI(M) state secretary late Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, he has been representing the Thalassery seat since 2016. He had been known as a fiery legislator in the Assembly and had often shouted down the Opposition members for speaking against the government, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan or ministers. Shamseer belongs to a Muslim family in Thalassery, which bore the brunt of communal violence in 1971. The CPI(M) has always spoken about how it stood by the Muslim community during the riots, highlighting it to demonstrate its commitment to protecting Muslims. Meanwhile, stepping up its attack on the Kerala Speaker, the NSS said that “faith is more important than science”. The NSS has urged all its units and followers to turn up at Ganesh temples on Wednesday and offer special prayers as part of its “Save the Faith Day” in protest against Shamseer’s remark. After visiting the temple at Changanassery in Kottayam district, G Sukumaran Nair, speaking to the media, demanded an apology from the Speaker. He said, “NSS would join hands with other Hindu outfits and political parties for the protection of faith. Hindus respect all religions. Behind Shamseer’s comments against Ganesh is hatred towards Hindus.”
