Kerala Education Minister V Sivankutty Thursday said he should not be held responsible if the Centre withholds funds of Rs 1,300 crore under Samagra Shiksha Kerala after the state government decided to suspend the MoU for PM SHRI scheme implementation amid opposition from the CPI.
Reacting to CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam’s remark that suspension of PM SHRI was a political victory of the Left politics, Sivankutty said, “it is not a matter of success or setback. I don’t think it (the suspension of MoU to implement the scheme) is a victory for one side. The LDF has a policy. CPI(M) is not in such a situation that the party has to learn Left politics from certain quarters. All Left parties uphold the communist values.”
“Since the state has given a letter to the Union Minister (suspending MoU for the scheme), there is uncertainty over release of the SSK fund of Rs 1,300 crore. As the education minister, I would not take responsibility if the fund is not released. Those who need to take the responsibility should take it,’’ he said.
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Referring to an article written by CPI state secretary Binoy Viswam suggesting LDF’s political stance led to Kerala’s letter to the Centre against PM SHRI, he said, “By reading the article, it is clear who it points to. We are not fools.”
Responding to Sivankutty’s remarks, Viswam said Thursday said he did not understand why the minister was provoked. Viswam said that as the state secretary of CPI, he was not ready for any provocation and his political awareness did not allow it. “All should have that political awareness,” he said.
Viswam said the PM SHRI and NEP are interconnected and part of an attempt to implement the RSS agenda. “There are CPI(M) leaders here to explain that,” he said. He said he did not believe Sivankutty lacked political awareness, describing him as a respected leader, a good friend, and an able education minister.
Viswam said if the Centre denies SSK funds citing the PM SHRI scheme, the Left front should counter it politically and legally.
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After being reluctant for years and alleging that it was a tool for “saffronisation” of education and would bring schools under Centre’s control, the Kerala education department last month signed the MoU with the Central government for PM SHRI. The CPI opposed it on the ground it was not consulted, following which the government suspended the MoU and formed a seven-member Cabinet sub-committee to review it.
CPI reckoned the government’s climbdown on PM SHRI as a major political victory for the party in the LDF, where CPI(M) had been known for unilaterally taking policy decisions.
Although the decision to suspend the MoU was taken last month, the Education department delayed its communication to the central government, forcing CPI to mount another round of pressure on CPI(M). Finally, the decision was communicated to the central government on Wednesday by the Education Department.
