Kerala - Thiruvananthapuram   

NCP flays Devaswom ordinance

Special Correspondent

Karunakaran says it is an `affront to the Hindu community'

K.Karunakaran

Thiruvananthapuram : Nationalist Congress Party leader K. Karunakaran has come out strongly against the Devaswom Board ordinance saying it amounted to an ``affront to the Hindu community''.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Mr. Karunakaran said the ordinance would hurt the sentiments of the majority community. The Government did not have any justification to bring in an ordinance that would upset the existing structure of temple administration.

He said all Devaswom legislations in the past were debated inside and outside the Assembly before the laws were passed. Usually the Government went in for an ordinance only when the situation warranted.

The proposed ordinance only reflected the Government's mismanagement and inefficiency, he said.

He said the ordinance would affect the functioning of all Devaswoms. To the best of his knowledge, the Government cannot disband the incumbent board.

He objected to the provisions relating to submitting of quarterly audit reports to the Government, the swearing in of elected Devaswom members before the Chief Secretary and the qualifications of members that discriminated between male and female nominees.

To a question, Mr. Karunakaran said he did not view the Devaswom issue as one related to the Hindu community.

It was a question related to freedom of worship as guaranteed by the Constitution.

On whether he was opposed to the move to give representation to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes on Devaswom boards, Mr. Karunakaran said there was nothing novel about it.

He was instrumental in bringing in a provision in the Guruvayur Devaswom Board Act making it mandatory to appoint a person belonging to the Scheduled Caste as a member.

The Government's move was ``politically motivated'' and intended to disband the incumbent board.

Mr. Karunakaran also hit out at Hindu organisations that were "interested only in negotiating during election time" rather than upholding the interests of the community.

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