Swami Ranganathananda made contributions to secularism: Advani

THRISSUR: Former International president of the Sree Ramkrishna Mission, Swami Ranganathananda had made immense contribution towards nurturing secularism and religious harmony in the country, according to BJP leader L K Advani.

Releasing the biography of Swami Ranganathananda entitled ‘The Hermitage’ at nearby Puranattukara Sri Ramkrishna Math today, Advani said that he had a close association with the Swami when he was in Karachi as the head of Sri Ramkrishna Mission there.

He said that during his last meeting with Swami at Kolkata in 2003, he had particularly drawn his attention to Mohammadali Jinnah’s historic speech in the Constituent Assembly of Pakistan on August 11, 1947.

“The true exposition of the meaning of secularism can be found in this speech”, he had told Advani. These remarks about Jinnah had led to a controversy when Advani had gone to Pakistan in 2005.

Advani described Swami Ranganathananda who hailed from nearby Trikkur village, as the second Shankaracharya. He said that the people of Kerala could be proud of Kalady and Trikkur where Sankaracarya and Rangananthananda were born.