THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Congress leadership has conveyed its strong objection to the state government’s decision to implement contentious schemes such as PM SHRI, a development that could offset Chief Minister V D Satheesan’s and the IUML’s efforts to move ahead with the centrally sponsored programme.
The scheme sparked a political storm after the UDF government was accused of taking a political and ideological U-turn from its declared position in exchange for Central funds.
According to sources in the government and the party, the Congress national leadership has conveyed to the chief minister that the PM SHRI scheme runs contrary to the party’s stated policies and ideological stance. The communication is expected to weigh heavily on the government’s plans to proceed with its implementation.
The government had constituted a cabinet sub-committee to assess the merits and demerits of implementing the PM SHRI scheme. However, the Congress leadership is understood to have made it clear that adopting a scheme widely seen as aligned with the National Education Policy (NEP) would contradict the party’s declared stand.
The leadership is of the view that its government should not dilute the party’s political and ideological stand.
The change in stance has also triggered strong discontent within the IUML and among Muslim organisations. While in the Opposition, IUML leaders had declared that the PM SHRI scheme would be “thrown into the Arabian Sea” if the UDF came to power.
“PM SHRI is the backdoor to the NEP, which in turn opens the way for Sangh Parivar ideology to enter the school curriculum. We will not allow that to happen in Kerala,” a senior Congress leader said.
Moreover, the UDF had made the alleged “saffronisation” of the school curriculum by the then Pinarayi Vijayan government, in line with the Sangh Parivar agenda, a key campaign plank in the assembly elections. The Congress leadership believes any compromise on that position would cost the party and the UDF credibility, particularly among minority communities.
However, leaders close to Satheesan told TNIE that the government had effectively shelved the PM SHRI scheme for now after setting up a cabinet sub-committee. “The government is awaiting the sub-committee’s report,” a leader said.
Party sources said it was now up to the chief minister to convince the Congress leadership. The intervention comes at a time when both Satheesan and the IUML have claimed that the state was compelled to continue with the PM SHRI scheme after the previous LDF government signed an MoU with the Centre and accepted Central funds. The chief minister has also maintained that abandoning the scheme would result in a substantial financial loss to the state.
What Now?
Party sources said it is now up to the chief minister to change the Congress leadership’s mind. Both Satheesan and IUML have claimed that the state was compelled to continue with the PM SHRI scheme after the previous LDF government signed an MoU with the Centre and accepted funds
