A deeply disturbing request reportedly submitted by a right-wing employees’ union in the Kerala Circle the Bharatiya Postal Administrative Offices Employees Union, affiliated to the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) and BPEF] seeking permission to render an ideological song identified with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS Ganageetham) during the official Christmas celebrations scheduled to be organised on December 18, 2025 at the Kerala Circle office has been strongly protested by Rajya Sabha MP from the CPI-M, John Brittas in a letter to Union Minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region, Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia. Copies have been sent to the Secretary, Department of Posts, New Delhi and the Chief Postmaster General, Kerala Circle, Thiruvananthapuram.
Writing to make this communication public, John Brittas, on “X” says,
“Government offices are not ideological platforms. Introducing “RSS Ganageetham” into an official Christmas celebration violates constitutional secularism and insults minority faiths. It was a deliberate attempt to appropriate or overshadow a religious celebration with an unrelated ideological agenda. “Patriotism” does not flow from allegiance to any ideological organisation, but from fidelity to the Constitution of India. Wrote yesterday to the Union Communications Minister seeking immediate intervention. Now, instead of rejecting an unreasonable ideological demand, the Postal Department has cancelled the Christmas celebration itself – effectively punishing employees for speaking up. In trying to appease the aggressor while silencing the aggrieved, the administration has chosen the path of “comforting the strong and disciplining the vulnerable.” The question is unavoidable: who has this decision truly served – the BMS affiliated union, or employees who only sought to observe Christmas celebration with dignity?”
Government offices are not ideological platforms. Introducing “RSS Ganageetham” into an official Christmas celebration violates constitutional secularism and insults minority faiths. It was a deliberate attempt to appropriate or overshadow a religious celebration with an… pic.twitter.com/LJRRZxqd0T
— John Brittas (@JohnBrittas) December 18, 2025
In this letter to the Union Minister, J, Scindia, posted on social media, Brittas writes,
“I write to draw your good self’s urgent attention to a deeply disturbing request reportedly submitted by a right-wing employees’ union in the Kerala Circle the Bharatiya Postal Administrative Offices Employees Union, affiliated to the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) and BPEF] seeking permission to render an ideological song identified with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS Ganageetham) during the official Christmas celebrations scheduled to be organised on December 18, 2025 at the Circle office.
“At the outset, I wish to emphasise that Christmas is a sacred religious festival for the Christian community, observed in India not merely as a cultural occasion but as an expression of faith, inclusiveness, and goodwill. To seek to introduce, within such a religious celebration organised in a government office, a song explicitly associated with a partisan ideological organisation is not only inappropriate, but also profoundly insensitive and against the constitutional principles. It represents an avoidable intrusion of sectarian politics into a space meant for harmony, respect, and collective celebration.
“The contents of the union’s letter, including its repeated invocation of “patriotism” as a justification, are particularly troubling. Patriotism does not flow from allegiance to any ideological organisation, but from fidelity to the Constitution of India, its secular character, and its guarantee of equality and dignity to all citizens. To equate patriotism with the symbols or songs of a particular ideological formation is to narrow and distort the very idea of the nation.
“It is equally pertinent to note that government offices are constitutionally bound to remain ideologically neutral. Introducing RSS-associated content into a function, especially one linked to a minority religious festival, violates the long-established conventions of civil-service neutrality and risks conveying an impression of official endorsement of a particular ideology.
“Kerala has a proud history of religious coexistence and mutual respect. Christmas celebrations in government institutions in the State have traditionally been inclusive, voluntary, and secular in spirit, reflecting India’s composite culture rather than privileging or inserting any ideological narrative. The present request, if acceded to, would mark a dangerous departure from that tradition. More importantly, such an act would be perceived as an insult to the faith of Minority communities and as a deliberate attempt to appropriate or overshadow a religious celebration with an unrelated ideological agenda.
The full text of the letter may be read here:
MPRS/12/1733/2025
17.12.2025
Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia
Hon’ble Minister of Communications and Development of North Eastern Region
Government of India
Respected Shri Jyotiraditya M. Scindia Ji,
Sub: Kerala Postal Circle – Protest against attempt to impose sectarian ideology during
Christmas celebrations – Objection to the proposal to render ideologically affiliated song during official Christmas celebrations – RSS Ganageetham – reg:
I write to draw your good self’s urgent attention to a deeply disturbing request reportedly submitted by a right-wing employees’ union in the Kerala Circle the Bharatiya Postal Administrative Offices Employees Union, affiliated to the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS) and BPEF] seeking permission to render an ideological song identified with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS Ganageetham) during the official Christmas celebrations scheduled to be organised on December 18, 2025 at the Circle office.
At the outset, I wish to emphasise that Christmas is a sacred religious festival for the Christian community, observed in India not merely as a cultural occasion but as an expression of faith, inclusiveness, and goodwill. To seek to introduce, within such a religious celebration organised in a government office, a song explicitly associated with a partisan ideological organisation is not only inappropriate, but also profoundly insensitive and against the constitutional principles. It represents an avoidable intrusion of sectarian politics into a space meant for harmony, respect, and collective celebration.
The contents of the union’s letter, including its repeated invocation of “patriotism” as a justification, are particularly troubling. Patriotism does not flow from allegiance to any ideological organisation, but from fidelity to the Constitution of India, its secular character, and its guarantee of equality and dignity to all citizens. To equate patriotism with the symbols or songs of a particular ideological formation is to narrow and distort the very idea of the nation.
It is equally pertinent to note that government offices are constitutionally bound to remain ideologically neutral. Introducing RSS-associated content into a function, especially one linked to a minority religious festival, violates the long-established conventions of civil-service neutrality and risks conveying an impression of official endorsement of a particular ideology.
Kerala has a proud history of religious coexistence and mutual respect. Christmas celebrations in government institutions in the State have traditionally been inclusive, voluntary, and secular in spirit, reflecting India’s composite culture rather than privileging or inserting any ideological narrative. The present request, if acceded to, would mark a dangerous departure from that tradition. More importantly, such an act would be perceived as an insult to the faith of Minority communities and as a deliberate attempt to appropriate or overshadow a religious celebration with an unrelated ideological agenda.
I therefore earnestly request your good self to intervene forthwith and issue urgent explicit directions to the Department of Posts, Kerala Circle, not to accede to the request reportedly made by the Bharatiya Postal Administrative Offices Employees Union to render RSS Ganageetham during the official Christmas function in Kerala Circle scheduled for tomorrow.
Thanking you.
Yours faithfully,
John Brittas
Copy to:
- The Secretary, Department of Posts, New Delhi
- The Chief Postmaster General, Kerala Circle, Thiruvananthapuram
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