When the RSS mouthpiece Organiser published an article, Kerala: God’s Own Country or Godless Country , on November 15, its contents caused a furore in the State, with parties across the board condemning the article. Many saw it as mocking the people and fomenting communal trouble in the State.
On a complaint from the Kerala Sasthra Sahithya Parishad, the Press Council of India served a show-cause notice on Prafulla Ketkar, Editor of Organiser, on December 16. He has been given 14 days to respond.
The article, written by Surendra Nathan, a Mumbai-based lawyer, not only mocked the “irreligious” attitude in the State but also cast aspersions on the youth, especially the Muslim community.
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The Parishad, said to be close to the CPI(M), alleged that the article appeared to criticise Kerala’s beef-eating culture and showed the State in a poor light by mocking its culture. “This magazine is being circulated widely in and outside the country and is also widely read by a large population through its online edition. This article abuses the culture, tradition and civilisation of Kerala. This article also instigates caste and communal violence in the State,” the Parishad said in its petition.
Council officials said the notice was served under Section 14 (1) of the Press Council Act of 1979, which empowers the Council to seek explanations from publications on complaints of offence in articles to public taste or journalistic ethics. After a hearing, the Council may hold an inquiry. If it is satisfied, it may warn, admonish or censure the newspaper or news agency and editors or journalists in question.
Mr. Ketkar said he was surprised at the notice. “The Council is not aware of the details. This was an opinion written by a writer from Kerala who resides in Mumbai. He has raised some serious issues confronting the State. The foremost is the rise of Islamic fundamentalism in the northern parts of Kerala, home to many Muslims, and the migration of its people which is never mentioned,” Mr. Ketkar said.
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He said Chief Minister Oommen Chandy had written to the Organiser after the article was published in November, just before Deepavali. “I responded to him. I also feel there was an upsurge in the support for the BJP in the municipal polls and the Chief Minister must have come under pressure to write to us,” he said. The magazine, he added, accommodated all kinds of opinion.