Those in the forefront of the Sabarimala agitation to protect the traditions at the hill shrine are going to get a political dividend in the form of a favourable public opinion, O. Rajagopal, BJP MLA, has claimed.
He was here on Sunday to open a seminar on ‘Renaissance in Kerala: History and the present’, organised by Bhaskar Rao Smaraka Samiti. Mr. Rajagopal likened the Sabarimala agitation to the Ram Janmabhumi movement demanding construction of a Ram temple at Ayodhya, which, he claimed, was a turning point in the political landscape of the country.
The BJP leader said politicians should stay away from renaissance as political parties would not be able to bring out any social change in society on their own. Mr. Rajagopal pointed out that the social transformation brought about by reformers such as Sree Narayana Guru and Chattambi Swamikal had a spiritual foundation.
Meanwhile, the BJP veteran claimed that Swami Vivekananda had reportedly called Kerala a “lunatic asylum” not because of untouchability prevalent in society then. It was a fact that those from the downtrodden sections were not granted the right to enter the houses of upper caste Hindus then.
However, people from the lower rungs of Hinduism were being accepted by their fellow brethren soon after their conversion to other religions. Mr. Rajagopal said while untouchability was prevalent across the country, such a practice was present only in Kerala, and that must have prompted Vivekananda to call Kerala a lunatic asylum, he added.
