Kochi, Apr 21 (PTI) Kerala Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar on Tuesday stressed that indiscriminate protests and slogan shouting are not part of India’s cultural ethos and called for meaningful dialogue and discussions.
He invoked Adi Shankara’s tradition of debate while inaugurating Sankara Jayanthi celebrations at Sree Sankaracharya University of Sanskrit here.
While addressing the gathering, the Governor said that raising “zindabad” or “murdabad” slogans for everything was not the cultural ethos of the country.
“Our culture is that if you have to say something, let us come together, sit and discuss. It is called dialogue, and that is what Adi Sankara propagated,” he said.
Arlekar also wondered why Sankara Jayanthi was not celebrated as a state festival in Kerala and termed it “unfortunate”.
The Governor’s remarks against unwanted slogan raising came amidst the protest staged by the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), the student wing of the ruling CPI(M), against him when he arrived at the university.
The SFI activists raised slogans against the Governor when he arrived for the function and left the campus.
The Left government in the state and the SFI have been at loggerheads with the Governor over various issues related to universities, where the Governor serves as Chancellor. PTI LGK KH
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