The Kerala Sahitya Akademi has decided to confer special membership to ‘renowned’ epigraphist and leftist historian M. R. Raghava Varier. Like Irfan Habib and Romila Thapar, Varier is a product of Indira Gandhi’s vigorous collaboration with the Islamists and Communists to remain in power during the late 1960s. They were entrusted with the work of rewriting/manipulating Bharat’s history for educational purposes through an Islamist-Marxist lens.
In 2018, Mavunkal Monson, an antiquities fraudster, supplied fake Chembolas (engraved copper plates) that claimed the ownership of Sabarimala was not with the Pandalam royal palace (trustees of the Sabarimala Ayyappa Temple). Varier, also the Center for Heritage Studies Director, confirmed at that time that this chembola was authentic with a historical record.
Later orator, writer, and art historian Dr M. G. Sasibhooshan stated that Varier and the communist regime ruling Kerala conspired to suppress the Hindu protest against women’s (of menstruating age) entry into Sabarimala. Despite knowing it was a fraud, Varier deliberately helped the left government gain the political upper hand.
Varier was allegedly paid handsomely for his ‘services,’ but the source of funds remains unknown. Varier is among the few Bharatiya scholars who have examined medieval Malayalam manuscripts collected in Biblioteca Nazionale de Roma, Rome, and Apostoloca Vaticana, Vatican. He was also honoured by the French and the English.
Christians despise the Sabarimala temple and have even resorted to arson at the centuries-old temple in Pathanamthitta, Kerala. Incidentally, Bhagwan Ayyappa has not been kind to them. Incidentally, if we could zero in on who funded Varier & Co., we could also find out who sponsored the Sabarimala temple conspiracy.
In September 2021, Monson was arrested by the local Crime Branch. He enjoyed a nexus with politicians (Congress and Communists), top police officials and a healthcare worker from Kerala, who married an Italian and became a middleman.
Monson, a helper in a church, allegedly married a Christian nun who worked there and absconded with her. He turned into the business of fraud and swindled dozens of rich Keralites, promising lucrative ‘deals’ and fake artefacts. This was despite intelligence reports that suggested he was a fraud.
The Kerala Sahitya Akademi has now decided to confer special membership on this deceiver, Varier. Another controversy is brewing around the functioning of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi in the cultural field.
On paper, the Akademi is an autonomous body established to promote the Malayalam language and literature based out of Thrissur, Kerala. In reality, it is a controversial communist propaganda machine that works to eulogise communist regimes, all the while claiming to be an independent institution.
Monson prepared the fake copper plates and claimed it was a 400-year-old ‘Chembola Thitooram’ (diktat). Others involved in the controversy included Sahin Antony, the then Kochi Bureau Chief of 24 News Channel and his boss, Sreekandan Nair. Leftist media, including Deshabhimani newspaper, Kairali TV & others, publicised the fake stories.
All the accused news channels still continue to propagate fake news.
The latest anti-Hindu Sabarimala temple conspiracy began in 2016. When the communists came to power in Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan roped in prominent ‘historian’ Romila Thapar and local leftist ‘historians’ M R Raghava Varier and K N Panikker for a session on ‘Indian History.’
These historians were to create fissures amongst Hindus using fabricated evidence. E Santhosh, a researcher (another communist crony), joined this team. Citizens paid for both Santhosh & Varier since both were state government employees.
In 2017, Varier examined those Sabarimala copper plates and declared them genuine. Varier studied the inscriptions on the copper plate and claimed it was prepared in 1668 since the script matched Brahmi, which was used back then. The fake historian declared that as per the copper plates, Sabarimala was a ‘Dravidian’ temple and that all rituals there should be conducted by non-Brahmin pujaris.
The Sabarimala agitation broke out in 2018 when the communists (with help from the Supreme Court) facilitated the entry of non-Hindu women inside the temple. The Pinarayi Vijayan government used the fake copper plates to foment trouble among Hindus.
Antony from 24 News used the fake copper plates and aired the news from Monson’s ‘museum.’ They claimed the Ezhavas had the right to perform rituals in Sabarimala. It is strange how the Tantri family has reached important positions in Sabarimala by bypassing this, the media alleged.
In 2018, the communist regime made Varier the Centre for Heritage Studies Director-General at Tripunithara in Ernakulam.
Varier officially stated that he had examined this Chembola and declared it an original. The Centre for Heritage Studies Director-General confirmed that Kunhanpanikar of Tanneermukkam Cheerapanchira was living in a hut near the shrine of Sabarimala temple in 1668. Thus, the copper plates are a reliable historical record.
With this, the media turned against the Tantri family. This became an opportunity for the Pinarayi government to suppress the Hindu mass agitations against women’s entry of menstruating age into Sabarimala.
During the 2018 Sabarimala demonstrations, the copper inscription gained significant attention when news outlets featured it as a genuine record of Sabarimala ceremonies and customs.
The much-touted copper plates displayed on TV were too thin, and a round seal was engraved. Round seals came much later with the advent of the British, and the quality of the copper hinted that the inscriptions were fake.
The truth came out much later.
When the crime branch arrested and interrogated Monson, the fraudster revealed that the Chembola copper plates he had given were fake and that he had fabricated them himself. With this, the conspiracy came to light. According to the preliminary findings in the case, the copper plate was fake, like many other claims made by Monson.
Later, when the truth came out, fearing a loss of reputation and credibility, fake reporter Anthony was fired from fake news propagandist 24 News Channel. Historian Sasibhooshan clarified that Varier knew the copper plates were fake and had told him about this.
The Pandalam royal family and the BJP wanted an analysis into the authenticity of those copper plates by the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) and an investigation into the conspiracy by a central agency. Though the Communist Party of India Marxist denied any role, they refused to transfer the case from the state crime branch.
It was reported that the Archaeological Survey of India would submit a report confirming that this copper plate was fake. Nothing happened, and all the conspirators involved still ply other fake anti-Hindu propaganda.
In November 2021, the Crime Branch recorded Varier’s statement at his Koyilandy, Kozhikode, home. They questioned him about the authenticity of the inscriptions on the Sabarimala copper plate that conman Monson possessed.
Varier admitted he had deciphered the inscriptions of the copper plate in Monson’s possession. However, Varier neither remembered nor was sure of the contents. Varier said he read the inscriptions when he visited Monson’s house. His interest in history led him to Monson’s house to read the inscriptions.
In any case, the relevance of Kerala Sahitya Akademi giving special membership to someone like Varier is being questioned.
