MALAPPURAM: The IUML has dug in its heels over retaining the education portfolio in the upcoming UDF government, treating the department as a core pillar of its political clout within the coalition.
Senior party leader and potential ministerial candidate in the upcoming UDF cabinet, K M Shaji told TNIE that the League would not make any compromise on the portfolio and plans to merge the general education and higher education departments into a single powerful portfolio.
Speculation had been rife that the Congress was considering reclaiming the education department this time by swapping it for another major portfolio. Amid the debate, BJP leader and newly elected Kazhakoottam MLA V Muraleedharan launched a sharp attack against IUML,warning that handing over the education department to the League would have “far-reaching consequences” and strengthen “communal interests” in the sector.
However, Shaji claimed Muraleedharan’s remarks had only strengthened the League’s position within the UDF.
“Muraleedharan is now playing the same role Vellappally Natesan once played. Whenever Natesan attacked us politically, it only brought us closer to the public. Muraleedharan is following the same path,” he said.
“Even if the Congress had any thoughts about taking over the department, they would now rethink it after his statement. In fact, we had already decided that the education portfolio would not be exchanged with the Congress. Unlike the LDF government, we plan to unify the general education and higher education departments under one ministry this term,” Shaji added.
Sources within the IUML said the party leadership had internally debated whether retaining a high-profile and politically sensitive portfolio like education could become a liability. However, the leadership has reportedly decided to hold on to all major portfolios it managed in previous UDF governments.The party is now in the final phase of discussions to select its five ministerial nominees.
“There is no question of accepting anything less than five ministerial berths,” Shaji asserted.
The education department has historically remained synonymous with the IUML ever since the formation of the UDF. Over the decades, however, the party’s control over the portfolio has repeatedly triggered fierce political controversies and allegations of communal influence in the education sector. C H Mohammed Koya first handled the education portfolio between 1967 and 1973 in the EMS Namboodiripad and C Achutha Menon ministries. P K Abdurabb held the portfolio during the last UDF government, from 2011 to 2016.
The IUML’s repeated control over the education department has long remained a flashpoint in Kerala politics, with rival parties consistently accusing the League of turning a crucial public sector into a political stronghold.
From the early years of coalition politics, the party’s stewardship of the department invited allegations that educational administration was being shaped around community-centric interests rather than broader academic reforms.
Questions over the League’s role in the sector have intensified during different phases of UDF rule. However, even amid recurring controversies, the IUML leadership has shown no signs of retreating from its claim over the portfolio.