From reformist group to voice of Ezhavas, why SNDP Yogam's stock is high in Kerala politics

The Print

27-04-2025

Post the 2024 general election, CPI(M) state secretary M.V. Govindan had urged SNDP Yogam to resist 'saffronisation', as CPI(M) lost much of its core Ezhava votes to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). To this, Yogam chief Vellappally Natesan responded firmly, saying no one can politicise SNDP, 'neither the saffron parties nor the Communists'.
The state's largest Hindu community, Ezhavas have traditionally supported the Left and make up an estimated 23 percent of Kerala's population. Much of the Yogam's following is among Ezhavas, categorised as Other Backward Classes (OBC) in Kerala and Tamil Nadu.
Thiruvananthapuram: Last year, following the Left Democratic Front's (LDF) debacle in the Lok Sabha elections, of the many fingers pointed within the Communist Party of India (Marxist) for its poor performance, one was directed at the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam. The Yogam is a social service organisation that has represented the Ezhava community in Kerala since its establishment in 1903.
On paper, the organisation is not a political one. But, on the ground, the Yogam, and the following that it brings with it, has a significant impact on the state's politics. A nuanced reading of Vellappally's response, seen in the context of the Yogam's growth under him, translates to the organisation having no permanent friends or enemies in politics.
As Kerala inches closer to local body polls slated for later this year and assembly polls next year, CPI(M) appears to be cosying up to the same Yogam it once targeted for allegedly aligning with BJP. The shift also underlines the importance of the Yogam in Kerala politics.
'We can't say SNDP or Vellappally directly influence state politics. But the issue is that the difference in votes between LDF and UDF in Kerala is always less. So, even one vote becomes crucial during elections,' Dr P.J. Vincent, head of the department of history at Kozhikode's Government Arts & Science College, told ThePrint.
The need to embrace the Ezhava community became apparent when Kerala Chief Minister and CPI(M) leader Pinarayi Vijayan defended Vellappally's controversial remark made earlier this month in northern Kerala's Malappuram district. Vellappally, who finished 30 years at the helm of the Yogam, said Malappuram was the 'state of one particular community where even fresh breath was hard to find' for Ezhavas.
Vijayan defended him, saying the Ezhava leader was not against any particular religion or community, but his views were directed at a particular political party, apparently referring to Indian Union Muslim League (IUML).
The chief minister's haste in defending Vellappally also stems from the fact that Ezhavas' support to BJP has been on an upward trajectory these past few years.
According to the CSDS-Lokniti post-poll survey, 32 percent of Ezhavas voted for BJP in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls, along with 5 percent of the Christian community. In contrast, in 2021, 53 percent of Ezhavas had supported the Left and formed LDF's largest support base, while support to BJP from the community was only 23 percent.
The shift assumed significance since the Left-led alliance could only win one of the 20 Lok Sabha seats it contested in Kerala last year, while its vote share diminished from 36.29 percent in 2019 to 33.34 percent in 2024.
With the state heading for crucial local body polls in December and assembly polls in 2026, support from each corner becomes crucial.
'Vijayan is safe to defend Vellappally. He knows the Opposition can't question Vellappally,' said Athul Nandan, a research scholar of political science at University of Kerala.
Nandan added that CPI(M) retaining its support among Ezhavas is crucial to the party's prospects in the 2026 assembly polls in Kerala—the only state where it is in power.
Speaking to ThePrint, an SNDP Yogam functionary said on condition of anonymity that the distance between Vijayan and Vellappally has narrowed significantly since the Lok Sabha polls. 'The Pinarayi Vijayan government knows that Ezhava votes are crucial for them to retain power. The chief minister is making conscious efforts to keep Vellappally close to him,' he explained, adding that many Yogam members had voted for BJP as the party's election campaign involved visits to each Yogam office in the state.
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Rise of SNDP Yogam
It was 1888 when the spirital leader and social reformer Sree Narayana Guru consecrated a Siva idol in Aruvippuram village on the banks of Neyyar river in Thiruvananthapuram. With this act, he became the first non-Brahmin to consecrate an idol in Kerala. He famously said he had consecrated an 'Ezhava Siva' idol.
It marked a turning point in the fight against caste discrimination in Kerala. It underlined that the right to worship was for everyone and not just 'upper caste' Brahmins, and Guru's statement that the Earth should be a place where everyone could live without divisions of caste and religion, rippled through the state in the years to come.
In 1903, one of Guru's followers, Dr Padmanabhan Palpu, founded an organisation to represent and uplift the state's backward Ezhava community. Named after Guru himself, the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam not only raised the social standing of the community, but also brought economic advantages to them.
Today, SNDP Yogam runs several educational institutions, hospitals, and other bodies, and enjoys clout as a political pressure group.
'The Yogam inspired the people to construct more temples and gave propaganda to the activities of Narayana Guru. Consequently, a large number of temples were built all over Kerala, because it was partly on the basis of religious supremacy over the 'lower castes',' wrote Dr Praveen O.K., assistant professor in the department of history at Sree Kerala Varma College, in his 2018 paper titled 'Sree Narayana Guru and SNDP Yogam'.
Praveen said libraries and schools were also attached to these temples, which emancipated 'lower classes'. Later, the Yogam also stepped into agriculture and industries, as most Ezhavas were dependent on agriculture, and promoted trade and commerce.
From reformist group to caste-based outfit
Dr Praveen's paper mentions that the activities of the Yogam 'proved that they used the legislative as a forum to present their grievances before the authorities and seek redress'.
But Vincent said the organisation's shift from a reformist group to a caste-based outfit was sooner rather than later. 'Within 10 years of its establishment, the organisation had lost its relevance as a reformist group. From upholding values of humanity and equality, it had transformed into a caste-based organisation that solely looked into the welfare of the (Ezhava) community,' he said, referring to a letter Guru wrote to Dr Palpu in 1916.
In the letter, Guru explained that the organisation was limiting itself to caste pride and announced his resignation.
Vincent, however, added that grouping together on the basis of caste identity was important at the time of SNDP Yogam's formation because the struggle for equal rights was deeply rooted in casteism.
Jayakumar, an SNDP functionary based in Thiruvananthapuram, told ThePrint the Yogam's activities are mostly coordinated through its family units. 'We identify if any community member needs financial aid for medical or other purposes, and we collect money and make sure we are there for each other,' Jayakumar said. He added that around 200 units coordinate among members of Ezhava community and hold membership drives.
SNDP since Vellappally
Reacting to the appointment of Dr P.M. Mubarak Pasha as Vice-Chancellor of the state-run Sree Narayana Guru Open University in 2020, Vellappally had accused the LDF government in Kerala of hurting the sentiments of the 'Sreenarayaneeya' community.
The government, remarked, was succumbing to the demands of minority communities when SNDP Yogam demanded a member from the community be appointed as its head.
'The community became a strong pressure group after Vellappally became its general secretary,' Vincent said, suggesting that Vellappally influenced the Vijayan-led government to appoint many Ezhavas to various positions within the state administration. He said the SNDP, which was at one time merely politically aware and supported successive state governments, started directly interfering in Kerala's politics after Vellappaly took charge.
A businessman from Alappuzha, Vellappally was appointed the Yogam's general secretary three decades ago. His leadership also marked the gradual increase in the organisation's influence over state politics, with several attempts to join with other Hindu caste groups and even floating a political wing of the Yogam named Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS).
In 2012, Vellappally joined hands with the Nair Service Society (NSS) leadership under the late K.R. Narayana Panikkar to present a unified Hindu front. But differences between the two leaders came in the way. There were attempts to revive the alliance, but in vain.
In December 2015, Vellappally undertook a 16-day Samatwa Munnetta Yatra to unite Hindu caste groups across the state, at the culmination of which he announced the formation of BDJS. The 'secular' party's slogan, he declared, would be 'equality and justice for all'.
Vellappally's son, Thushar, was appointed president of BDJS.
However, the rally attracted undue attention due to presence of several BJP functionaries. Significantly, the Ezhava leader had met BJP leader Amit Shah in Delhi months ago in July to discuss problems faced by the majority Hindu community in Kerala.
In the 2016 assembly elections, BDJS was part of the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and contested 37 of the 140 seats in the state, but didn't win any. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the party conteseted four of the 20 seats in the state, including the Wayanad seat, where Thushar lost to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.
Thushar finished third, with only 7.25 per cent votes. He continues to lead BDJS, but Vellappally has distanced himself from the party. 'He doesn't have specific politics. He can be a supporter of LDF, UDF or BJP as per his needs,' said the SNDP Yogam functionary quoted earlier. He added that there has been an attempt to appoint BJP supporters as Yogam office functionaries in the state following the formation of BDJS.
As the Yogam functionary put it: 'Vellappally stands with the ruling party in the state to get what he wants. But Thushar wants to stick to BJP.'
(Edited by Nida Fatima Siddiqui)
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