'Just remembered my father, what's wrong': Kerala CM on row over use of caste surname in swearing-in

Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday explained that he used his caste surname "Menon" during his swearing-in ceremony to remember his father. Satheesan said he saw nothing wrong in doing so on such an occasion.

The newly sworn-in CM faced criticism from sections of social media as well as some Congress leaders for using the caste surname during the swearing-in ceremony, triggering a debate in the state over caste identity and political messaging.

"Why is it wrong if I mention my father's name. Shouldn't I remember him," Satheesan asked while speaking to reporters after a cabinet meeting here.

"I mentioned my father's name and remembered my mother in my mind. There was no scope to mention my mother's name as well. Otherwise, I would have mentioned that too," the senior Congress leader said.

The controversy erupted after some social media users compared Satheesan's latest oath as chief minister with the oath he took as a legislator in 2021.

During the earlier swearing-in in the Assembly, he had identified himself simply as "V D Satheesan". However, at the recent ceremony of the new UDF government, he had said: "I, Vadasseri Damodara Menon Satheesan..." While a section of Congress insiders maintained that the chief minister had merely used the expanded form of his name during the ceremony, others claimed there was a "message" behind the use of the caste surname.

According to them, the gesture could be interpreted as an attempt to reach out to sections of the Hindu community amid criticism from Sangh Parivar organisations and the BJP over the Congress-led UDF's political engagement with the Indian Union Muslim League and Jamaat-e-Islami.

The leadership of two major Hindu community organisations in Kerala--the Nair Service Society (NSS), representing the Nair community to which Satheesan belongs, and the SNDP Yogam representing the numerically strong Ezhava community, were reportedly not in favour of his selection as the CM.

Congress leaders Jinto John and Anoop V R were among those who criticised Satheesan's use of the surname during the oath-taking ceremony.

(With PTI inputs)