Kerala inks PM SHRI pact on Oct 23 for ₹1,446cr school upgrades without LDF/Cabinet nod, reversing prior NEP opposition.
Labels move "unilateral" and "discreet," fearing NEP backdoor via RSS-agenda; demands coalition review to uphold anti-centralization stance.
UDF invites CPI defection; BJP mocks LDF cracks; CPI(M) stays mum, but rift exposes governance tensions in anti-federal fight.
The Communist Party of India (CPI) has openly rebelled against its senior partner, the CPI(M), igniting a major rift within the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) over the Kerala government's abrupt decision to join the Centre's Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme. The scheme, aimed at upgrading 14,500 schools nationwide to NEP 2020 standards with digital and vocational focus, was signed via a secretive MoU on October 23, securing ₹1,446 crore in funds but bypassing LDF allies and Cabinet approval, drawing sharp CPI ire.
CPI State Secretary Binoy Viswam lambasted the move as a "violation of coalition ethics" and "discreet pact" that undermines the LDF's longstanding opposition to the "RSS-influenced" NEP, which Kerala has resisted since 2020 over fears of centralization eroding state autonomy. In a letter to LDF convener T.P. Ramakrishnan, the CPI demanded an immediate coalition discussion, warning that the MoU could force NEP implementation through "backdoor" mandates like curriculum alignment and display boards labeling schools as "PM SHRI," while only yielding negligible initial funds tied to utilization certificates. Civil Supplies Minister G.R. Anil, a CPI leader, echoed that the decision "contravened" the Left's national line, necessitating LDF and Cabinet deliberation for such a "drastic reversal."
The controversy erupted after General Education Secretary K. Vasuki signed the MoU in New Delhi on October 23, accompanied by Samagra Shiksha Kerala Director A.R. Supriya, following Education Minister V. Sivankutty's meetings with Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan. The government, facing frozen SSA funds, views PM SHRI as a "technical measure" for infrastructure upgrades in two schools per block without NEP endorsement, but CPI counters that the scheme's ideological pillar risks "politically advantaging" the BJP. CPI's national and state leadership is deliberating a formal response, with Viswam stressing the need to "think twice" on Centre pacts to avoid diluting LDF's anti-federalism fight.
Opposition UDF, sensing discord, pounced: Leader V.D. Satheesan accused Vijayan of "betraying" anti-NEP unity and violating ethics by sidelining CPI, while inviting the party to join if it quits LDF. BJP echoed the critique, with CPI(M)'s M.V. Govindan retorting dismissively to "Who is this CPI?" amid accusations of the junior ally's irrelevance.
