Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], October 27 : Kerala Students' Union members on Monday marched towards the Education Minister's office in Thiruvananthapuram to protest against the state government's decision to sign an MoU on the Centre's PM SHRI scheme for school development.
The Kerala government signed an MoU on the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme, commonly known as the PM SHRI scheme, said Director General of Public Education in Kerala, Umesh N. S. K, on Monday.
This decision of the state government is facing sharp criticism from the opposition parties and student organisations.
Earlier in the day, Congress MP KC Venugopal called the Pinarayi Vijayan-led Kerala government's move to sign an MoU for the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme a "back door" decision with a "secret agenda".
Speaking to reporters, Venugopal questioned the Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] government, demanding a probe into the alleged pressure to make a "policy shift."
Venugopal said, "Decisions like signing the PM SHRI agreement without the knowledge of the Cabinet, the LDF, or even the party leadership raise serious questions. It must be investigated where this pressure came from to take such a decision through the back door. I believe that is what is most troubling for Kerala. This appears to be part of a secret agenda."
"It's not just a trip to Delhi; for some time now, we've been seeing decisions aligning with the communal policies of the Central Government. Even the CPI(M)'s all-India secretary seems to be under pressure, as the media suggests. The truth will come out in the coming days," he added.
Acknowledging an agreement on PM SHRI in Congress-ruled states, Venugopal said that they signed the MoU in the Ashok Gehlot government's final days, before the BJP came to power, while the Congress did not sign it in Himachal.
Venugopal said, "I have already pointed out that in Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Telangana, and Karnataka, the signing of this scheme followed a clear political pattern. In Rajasthan, the Congress government signed it in its final days, right before the BJP came to power. In Himachal, we didn't sign it; they did after coming to power. Telangana and Karnataka followed similar trends."