Dr. Mohanan Kunnummel, Vice Chancellor of Kerala University said on August 23 in Thiruvananthapuram that Bharat is governed by those who believe in the RSS and questioned why the organisation would need his support. Referring to Generation Z, he said foreign forces were attempting to turn young people into “cockroaches and drug addicts”. He questioned how he could continue as a Vice Chancellor if he did not resist such attempts.
He said opposition coming from abroad could not be ignored and was “not accidental”.
Kunnummel was referring to the controversy surrounding his earlier remarks in which he asked students whether they were “cockroaches”. Explaining the remark, he said the students did not understand the question and therefore remained silent. Had they been mature enough, he said, they would have reacted. He added that some students approached him after the programme and told him they had not understood what he meant.
“Cockroaches are seen in drains,” he said, referring to a Supreme Court judge’s observation that young people should not be like cockroaches. He then referred to a person living abroad who allegedly declared that they were all “cockroaches”, following which several others joined him. “How can it be accidental?” Kunnummel asked.
He also defended his earlier remark that those who know their motherland would sing “Vande Mataram”. He said his words had been deliberately misinterpreted with a “sinister aim”.
“Bharat is ruled by those who believe in RSS. RSS does not need my help,” he said.
Kunnummel said Gen Z was capable of achieving anything and insisted that he did not consider young people to be “cockroaches”. Instead, he said he had described them as “lions”, invoking Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose. According to him, lions are capable of responding more effectively than cockroaches.
On August 15, Kunnummel had said at Manvila in Thiruvananthapuram that those who know their motherland would sing “Vande Mataram”, while those who do not know it would not. He made the remarks while addressing “Sankalp 2026” Yuva Sangamam organised by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh.
His remarks have drawn criticism from both the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) government and the CPI(M)-led opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF).
Kunnummel has also taken a proactive stance on issues concerning campus violence and extremist activities, including incidents involving SFI and what he has described as attempts by religious extremists to disrupt campuses.
