Thiruvananthapuram: Amidst a threat from Vaikundaswami Dharma Pracharana Sabha (VSDP) Chairman Vishnupuram Chandrasekharan about forming a political party, Syro Malankara Catholic Church Major Archbishop Cardinal Baselios Mar Cleemis has come out against the State Government on reservation for members of the Nadar community belonging to the Church.
Cardinal Cleemis, while addressing a meeting at Nedumangad here on Sunday, alleged that Chief Minister Oommen Chandy ‘cheated’ them over reservation for the Nadar community.
Meanwhile, Mr Chandrasekharan has made it clear that VSDP would announce the formation of the new party during the Nadar Raksha Yatra, the Secretariat march to be organised here on Monday as both fronts have failed to take up the issue of reservation for Christians other than those belonging to the South Indian United Church (SIUC).
Cardinal Cleemis that the State Government should remember that those who had been denied justice had the right to vote. The government will have to pay the price for the tears shed by the Nadar community members. The Church wwould unitedly fight denial of justice, he said adding that the MLAs from Thiruvananthapuram who won with Nadar votes should remember that.
Mr Chandrasekharan said that both retired Chief Secretary Jiji Thomson and Cultural Affairs Minister K C Joseph had pointed out that it was the opposition by Home Minister Ramesh Chennithala that had resulted in the denial of reservation to a section of Nadar Christians.
