MALAPPURAM: Amid mounting criticism from within its own ranks just two months after the UDF government took office, the IUML leadership has convened a crucial meeting of all its ministers at Panakkad on Friday.
The first such meeting since the government assumed office, it is expected to review the ministers’ performance amid growing discontent over controversial staff appointments, policy decisions and their perceived disconnect from the party line.
Though officially billed as a “tea reception”, the gathering carries significant political weight as it comes ahead of the League’s state committee meeting in Kozhikode on Saturday, where the performance of its ministers is expected to come under scrutiny. State president Syed Sadiq Ali Shihab Thangal and other senior party leaders are expected to lead the interaction.
League ministers have come under sustained fire from the party’s feeder organisations, particularly the Youth League and the Muslim Students Federation (MSF), over what they describe as unilateral decision-making. The criticism centres on controversial staff appointments, the government’s stand on the PM SHRI scheme and tax exemptions under the revised liquor policy, all of which have triggered unease within sections of the party.
‘Meet to review mins’ performance’
Senior League leaders said the Panakkad conclave is aimed at reviewing the ministers’ performance ahead of the state committee meeting.
“There is no other agenda. Questions about the ministers’ performance are likely to be raised at Saturday’s state committee meeting. The interaction at Panakkad is meant to give Thangal an opportunity to hear directly from the ministers about the work their departments have carried out during the government’s first two months,” a senior League leader told the TNIE.
However, party insiders said the leadership is unlikely to sidestep the controversies that have dogged the League since the government assumed office. Among the key issues expected to come up is the allegation that some ministers ignored the party leadership’s directives while appointing personal staff. The appointments reportedly sparked resentment among party functionaries and feeder organisations, which had expected the ministers to choose their staff from names recommended by the leadership.
The leadership is also expected to take up complaints from the Youth League that its workers are finding it increasingly difficult to secure appointments with ministers and that local issues raised by the organisation are being overlooked. In several districts, party workers have alleged that League ministers are more responsive to Congress legislators than to their own cadre, deepening concerns over a growing disconnect between the government and the party organisation.
Politically sensitive issues that have put the League on the defensive are also expected to figure in the discussions. These include the government’s stand on the PM SHRI scheme and the controversy over tax exemptions under the revised liquor policy, both of which have drawn criticism from sections of the party’s support base.
