A fresh political controversy has erupted in Keralam following a high-profile exchange between former Assembly Speaker A.N. Shamseer and Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana (SNDP) Yogam general secretary Vellappally Natesan.

Mr. Shamseer has hit back at Mr. Natesan via a Facebook post featuring an image of social reformer Sree Narayana Guru.

In his post, Mr. Shamseer wrote that Gurudevan, who gave meaning to Advaita, is writhing and dying in the laps of those carrying new purse-strings. The social media post was seen as a sharp indirect rebuke of Mr. Natesan’s leadership of the Yogam, an organisation established to uphold Sree Narayana Guru's ideals of secularism and anti-communalism.

The post came a few days after Mr. Natesan publicly attacked the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] leader, alleging that Mr. Shamseer possessed "the mindset of the Indian Union Muslim League" rather than a communist background.

The CPI(M) leadership has come out in strong support of Mr. Shamseer. Party State secretary M.V. Govindan publicly rejected Mr. Natesan’s remarks, stating that it is not up to Mr. Natesan to decide who Mr. Shamseer is, and strongly dismissed Mr. Natesan's characterisation of the senior leader.