Apologise to people for piece on Kerala: Oommen Chandy to RSS, Organiser

KOCHI: Kerala Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has asked the RSS and the editorial board of Organiser magazine to tender unconditional apology to the people of Kerala for deeply hurting the feelings of Malayalees by publishing the article of M Surendra Nath.

Criticising the article "Kerala: God’s Own Country or Godless Country" of Surendra Nath, he said that the magazine must withdraw the article without any further delay. Oommen Chandy said the editorial board of Organiser is ignorant of the "history, culture and traditions" of Kerala. "As a Malayalee who is rightly proud of the land of my nativity, and as chief minister of Kerala, I must defend the honour of my state and my fellow Malayalees," he added.

Surendra Nath and ‘Organiser’ have ridiculed Kerala in the name of violence in Kannur and on the basis of the alarming level of alcohol consumption, said Chandy. He countered the charges by stating that the violence in Kannur is perpetrated by RSS and BJP volunteers and the CPM followers. He claimed that Kannur is experiencing comparative calm due to the policies of UDF government.

He said the UDF government has closed down 730 bars. It is in the process of shutting down 10 per cent of the outlets of the State Beverages Corporation, annually, over a period of 10 years. In an article released to the media on Friday, Oommen Chandy said Kerala stands by democratic principles when it takes decision on topics like the eating of beef. As granted by the Constitution of India, the freedom to choose food is there for the people in Kerala as well as the people in the rest of the country.