Now the commies bark against Yagam

Jagam in red bastion kicks up row

Source:www.newindpress.com

KANNUR: The Communist fiefdom of Kannur, known for its ardent comrades, is getting ready for a maha yagam.

Sounds paradoxical. But here, stage has been set for a Rs 3-crore mahayagam amid a flurry of controversial comments and some feeble protests from CPM feeder organisations like the Purogamana Kala Sahithya Sangham (Pukasa) and the Sasthra Sahithya Parishat. The Sidhivinayaka Maha Yagam, organised by the Sidhi Vinayaka Trust, with the support of more than a hundred Ganapathy temples in the district, is all set to begin at the Raja’s High School, Chirakkal here on April 17.

The maha yagam, which the organisers prefer to call ‘Indian yagam for world peace – 2007’, is a rare one as it is being held after an interval of 1,136 years.

According to organisers, it was in Saka Varsha 827 that a maha yagam of this sort took place at a small village near Varanasi on the banks of the river Varana.

“We got the inspiration and guidance for this maha yagam from ancient texts including those from the disciples of Agasthya Muni. We had a plan to hold the maha yagam two years ago, but could not realise it. This time, we began the preparations more than six months ago,” said C.Padmanabhan, general secretary of the Sidhivinayaka Trust.

Incidentally, Padmanabhan, the main architect of the yagam, is a graduate in science and was a classmate of the CPM heavyweight and Home Minister Kodiyeri Balakrishnan. Padmanabhan believes that the yagam conforms with the WHO ideal of health that calls for “physical, mental, social and spiritual health of people.”

No sacrifice of animals will take place as part of the yagam, which consists of poojas and rituals from April 17 to May 2.

The venue of the yagam is being designed by Dr.Sree Vinayaka Chandra Deekshithar, a priest of Coimbatore Sidhalingeswara Kovil, supported by 25 veda scholars and 150 assistants. Among the prominent among those expected to attend the maha yagam are Karnataka Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy and Pejavoor Matam chief Narayana Saraswathy. The funds for the yagam will come from devotees and as offerings from temples.

Meanwhile, Pukasa has alleged that the ‘Sidhivinayaka Maha yagam’ will take people back to the dark days of superstition. It also said that the yagam is part of a programme organised by the neo-forces of capitalism to destroy the rationalist way of thought and the cultural and social progress brought about by the progressive Left organisations. Among those lined up against the yagam are Yuvakala Sahithi, Yukthivadi Sangham and Atma Vidya Sangham, besides Pukasa.

However, the CPM, has been careful not to make any comments on the issue. And so are other political parties, not ready to risk any backlash.

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