Thiruvananthapuram: Barely days after Jnanpith laureate MT Vasudevan Nair ignited a controversy by voicing his opinion about personality cults and undesirable power politics, veteran CPM leader and former minister G. Sudhakaran has come out against the veteran Malayalam writer.
At a protest gathering held by the CPM-affiliated Kerala Teachers Association, Sudhakaran stated that there is no need for MT Vasudevan Nair to speak about Marxism.
His remark came at a time when there is a heated discussion over whether MT was referring to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan or Prime Minister Narendra Modi. While some view this as a veiled attack against Vijayan, leaders of the ruling CPM and pro-left writers and cultural leaders outrightly rejected the notion.
“There is a historical stance taken by the left front on issues of public interest. We will protest even if we are the ruling party. We cannot solve public issues exclusively through governance. This is Marxism, and those who have studied it will get it… There is no need for MT Vasudevan Nair to talk about it. We’ve been saying the same…,” Sudhakaran said.
He went on to criticize the literary figures in Kerala who came to support the literary doyen and voiced their personal opinions. “…Why haven’t they spoken about this (subject) before? This demonstrates cowardice. It lacked honesty.”
Delivering the keynote address at a literary festival in Kozhikode on Thursday, MT took a dig at politicians, in the presence of Chief Minister Vijayan, stating that power gives way to dominance or authoritarianism at times.
He was recalling the legacy of Kerala’s well-respected legendary Marxist and the first chief minister of the state, EMS Namboothiripad, when he made the remarks.
G Sudhakaran frowns at MT’s remark; says no need for writer to teach ‘Marxism’ added by Webdesk on
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