People's Democracy

TWO YEARS OF UDF MISRULE IN KERALA

A MEANINGFUL DIALOGUE

Below is given the text of a dialogue between Pinarayi Vijayan, CPI(M) Kerala state secretary, and Professor Ninan Koshy, eminent educationist and social activist. The dialogue took place in the wake of the second anniversary celebrations of the hated UDF government of Kerala. The dialogue was noted down by journalist Sajeev Pazhoor and published in Deshabhimani daily on May 21.

PROF. KOSHY: The UDF has completed its two-year rule in the state. It had showered promises after promises on the people of the state. It had promised that development would be the main agenda of the government.  Unfortunately, the perspective of development itself is mistaken. They propagate that development means an increased investment and growth. I see that the UDF is following an anti-people path of development and does not take the people into account. How do you see it?

PINARAYI: I agree with you. The UDF agenda is not conducive to progress. Kerala has attained a position in the graph of development. A government has to lead the people forward from that point. But the UDF government is trying to come down from this point and destroy all the past achievements. Take, for example, the case of traditional industries. This sector has been the greatest employment generator in the state so far. Around 40 lakhs work in these units. What is their present plight? What is the plight of cashew workers? More than 30,000 men and women worked in KSCDC and CAPEX. Within one week of the UDF’s ascendancy to power, the KSCDC was closed. The CAPEX remained open for a few days. The gist of these measures is that the UDF leadership is arrogant to the extent of believing that they could do anything to the people. But they would learn that the rights and privileges of the workers in Kerala are no concessions from anybody.

ON WORKERS’ RIGHTS

PROF. KOSHY: They acquired their rights through long, drawn-out and concerted struggles.

PINARAYI: The owners tried to evade the question in all possible ways.  They would not grant any right to their workers who had no other option but struggle. Workers had to sacrifice many things, many invaluable things. They sacrificed even their lives. The result was tremendous. They acquired certain rights. This led to the betterment of the common mass. The working class got so powerful that no owner could question its rights and privileges. But now this government has initiated the process of ending this condition. Even state employees are being robbed of their legitimate rights. And what did the government argue when it robbed the employees of their rights? It said the fruits of the “loot” (employees’ rights) would be given to the workers in traditional industries.

PROF. KOSHY: They promised to give it to the farmers….

PINARAYI: Yeah! But they did not spend a penny in any of these sectors.  So what is this government? A gang of looters robbing the working class of their rights, of their privileges!

PROF. KOSHY: Anti-labour laws are being brought in the name of development!

PINARAYI: Our land has a history of progress. We have achieved a great many things. Other parts of the world looked up to Kerala with a kind of approbation and even astonishment. The workers fought and won rights. This earned them a respectable place in society, a decent life pattern. There has been an atmosphere of decent living and a civilised way of life. Others envied us. But the UDF government is now trying to destroy this atmosphere.

ON PEOPLE’S PLAN PROGRAMME

PROF. KOSHY: The People’s Plan programme the LDF government had introduced had a new perspective of development. EMS was the founding father of this movement. He wanted to take the people to a new stage of democracy through the People’s Plan and decentralization of powers.

PINARAYI: Sure. However, the UDF bands are averse even to the term People’s Plan. They hate decentralisation. This government and its ministers want everything to be concentrated in their hands. As a part of it the minister for SC/ST development stopped the money allocated for the development of scheduled castes and tribes. This government is not releasing the payments due to the local bodies either.

During the tenure of the LDF government, the media were all praise for its decentralisation measures. The whole land bore a festive mood. People from outside Kerala and from outside India came here to learn about this, to see what was happening. Even Antony’s partymen came to Kerala to learn about this new historic route of development and decentralisation. Does anybody visit Kerala now? But this government is following a policy of undoing the great attainments of our society.

ANTONY’S SPECIAL POLICY

PROF. KOSHY: It is bureaucrats who initiate the policies of a government and not the political leadership. The Asian Development Bank and others are also interfering in policy making. Is it right that bureaucrats have the main role in making policies?

PINARAYI: I don’t subscribe to the view because here you have a special policy of A K Antony. Bureaucrats get enabled to act in this way as a result of this policy. Look at the police policy, for instance.

PROF. KOSHY: That is what I mean. The director general of police says a police policy is not necessary.

PINARAYI: What is this policy really? In a democratic set-up, what can a DGP do except implementing what the government decides? Antony remains in control. That is why the DGP is able to act in the way he does. If Antony had any objection to what the DGP says and does, he would have stopped the DGP then and there. When the DGP says that there is no police policy, it means that there is an anti-people police policy.

PROF. KOSHY: The DGP is reported to have said that the Marad incident was not a communal riot. Is this attitude of the police related to the UDF’s policy?

PINARAYI: The DGP’s statement is quite unbecoming of his position. He was trying to cover up the Marad incident saying it was not a communal one. But he is totally mistaken.

PROF. KOSHY: Antony seems to be confusing the administrative matters with political matters and vice versa.

PINARAYI: In the case of Marad, the DGP took a stand that no one should have taken. This is the result of the unlimited immunity Antony has given him. The DGP rushed up to the media to say that the incident was not communal. Marad is an example of the Muslim terrorists cruelly attacking their supposed enemies. Behind the assault there were other reasons too. But Antony did not utter a word to disapprove what his DGP said.

SHARP CONTRAST BETWEEN UDF & LDF

PROF. KOSHY: During the LDF’s tenure, there was not a single communal tussle in the state? How do you see the UDF-Antony policy on communal tensions?

PINARAYI: Here the UDF stand is vulnerable. A government must adopt an uncompromising attitude against communal forces. Only then would it be able to contain these forces in time. During the 1991-1996 tenure of the UDF government, communal forces took 40 invaluable lives. After that, the LDF came to power in Kerala. These forces were here. The Sangh Parivar forces that had used their ugly weapons against the minorities were still here in Kerala. In this very period the Hindutva forces raised their head in other parts of the country. But in Kerala there was no ugly incident. Communal forces were not allowed to take a single life. Kerala maintained peace, amity and harmony. The LDF has a clear policy on communalism and its government sternly dealt with communal attempts. That is why there was no communal riot during the LDF’s tenure. But you may recall how the UDF came to power. It was in alliance with all sorts of communal and casteist forces.

PROF. KOSHY: It came to power with their support.

PINARAYI: Yeah! Recently, after the Marad incident, state BJP chief C K Padmanabhan openly admitted it. BJP men had voted for the UDF even in constituencies where BJP candidates were contesting. What does it mean? He warned Antony: “The chair you are sitting on is our donation; the result of our generosity.” The RSS and the BJP, the NDF and the PDP --- all such entities allied with the UDF to defeat the pro-people LDF. The present situation is a natural result of this unholy alliance. And what is its result? In the same Marad that we just mentioned, there was a terrible riot in January last year.  The riot began on January 3. But there was no police till the next day. A poor man was killed in cold blood. The police remained mute spectators to this gruesome violence. These are all the results of this government’s policy. Then, untoward incidents occurred not only in Marad but also in Thaikkal. What does it prove? That the government is not able to contain the communal forces. This is also a part of Antony’s special approach. He is very soft towards the Sangh Parivar.

PROF. KOSHY: Not only in his measures but also in ideology is he soft towards the Sangh Parivar.

PINARAYI: Yes, he is ideologically with the Sangh Parivar. He once said the minority should obey the majority, meaning that religious minorities must meekly submit to the Hindutva forces.

PROF. KOSHY: Yes, he said so in his Mathai Manjooran memorial address in 1993.

PINARAYI: Though he first said so in 1993, he still holds the same view.  He advises the minorities to compromise on their rights. The last two years witnessed cruel and gruesome assaults on minorities. Still Antony says to the media that he still holds his old views. The whole nation opposed saffronisation. But Antony is opposed even to the term saffronisation. You may recall that the West Bengal government took initiative to hold a meeting to oppose the saffronisation of education. Antony did not attend that meeting, nor did he send his education minister. Even the Congress chief ministers attended that meeting, but not Antony. Congress documents speak volumes against saffronisation, but not Antony. He is opposed to Congress leadership on the issue. Many a Congress leader has ridiculed Antony’s stance in this matter.

PROF. KOSHY: Antony is somewhat soft towards the Sangh Parivar.  Not only in this regard, his has been a retrogressive stance in all matters.

PINARAYI: On the issue of tridents’ distribution, the Congress government of Rajasthan sent the arrogant, communal Togadia to prison. The Congress leadership vehemently criticised the central government for granting permission for tridents’ distribution in Delhi. You know law and order in Delhi is a central subject. But Antony! He consented to tridents’ distribution in our state. What is his stand? He said in the peculiar situation prevailing in the state, the tridents distribution won’t lead to any untoward incident 

PROF. KOSHY: VHP-BJP leaders have openly praised this attitude of Antony. Will it have any significance beyond the state?

PINARAYI: A very dubious circumstance is emerging. You know this man, Antony, is a national leader of a secular party. When Togadia praises him, it must be viewed seriously. His leader, Sonia Gandhi, refers to Togadia as a menace to national unity. And Togadia praises Antony, a Congress leader!  Togadia even goes to the extent of saying that Antony is the fittest person to be the president of Indian National Congress. Antony is thus highly acceptable to the Sangh Parivar. One would have to find out the game behind.

GOOD HARVEST FOR EDUCATION BUSINESS

PROF. KOSHY: This government began its ‘reform’ first in the sphere of education. They have virtually abolished the public education system. Instead, they are on a privatisation spree. There have come institutions for commercialising and communalising education.  Thus this government has taken quite anti-people, anti-democratic measures that will have far-reaching consequences. Capitation fee and bribery have become lawful under the UDF.

PINARAYI: There are institutions that charge up to one lakh rupees from a student for admission. This cannot be permitted. The UDF thinks it could do such things with impunity. Agitations have to be organised against it. Students’ and teachers’ organisations in the state are very strong. Movements in educational institutions are very powerful. They have all to join hands to organise protest against this anti-people, anti-democratic education policy.

PROF. KOSHY: The main problem is that new institutions are being permitted on caste and religious lines. The history of Kerala is full of examples of combined study involving all sections of the community, irrespective of religion or caste. But this government is abolishing such institutions. Instead, new schools emerging on the basis of caste and religion admit students belonging to a particular community; they appoint teachers belonging to a particular community. The result would be fatal. How do you look at this?

PINARAYI: Caste organisations are out to earn money. Heavy bribing is now the order of the day. A concerted effort is on to create cleavages in society. Earlier, there was no situation that students belonging to a particular community could not study. When we were in power, some caste organisations argued that their young members were unable to study as these organisations were not granted permission to open schools and colleges. On one occasion I asked one such caste leader: “Do you mean that your offspring could study only in caste-run institutions? We had all studied in schools and colleges, but we had no community-run institutions. People of all creeds went to schools and colleges. Or not?” That leader could not give a reply to my question and began to beat about the bush. So this is not the problem. They in fact want to trade in education. Education is being made a commodity on sale. Not the interest of their communities or castes, what they care about is only monetary interest. Profit is their motive.

PROF. KOSHY: Don’t you feel that the CPI(M) must take greater interest in the field of education?

PINARAYI: Certainly. The whole society is interested in this sphere. Crores of people are involved. Lakhs of students are involved. The party sees this sphere as a very important one.

PROF. KOSHY: Do you have any new perspective or viewpoint on education?

PINARAYI: We have to decide according to the circumstances.

PROF. KOSHY: The Unified University Act is coming in the next assembly session. This would destroy whatever meagre autonomy the universities enjoy at present. The government is going to make the universities like government departments. How is the opposition going to face it?

PINARAYI: The opposition would face it in a democratic way. We would oppose the measure with all force. We would organise protracted struggles against commercialisation of education and against the attacks on the universities’ autonomy.  

(Translated by C P Aboo Backer, the text has been slightly edited.)