My job to act as 'bridge' in interests of Kerala: MP John Brittas

Thiruvananthapuram/New Delhi, Dec 4 (PTI) Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's remark that MP John Brittas had "mediated" the signing of the PM SHRI by the Kerala government was justified by the CPI(M) MP on Thursday, who said that his role was to act as a "bridge" in the interests of the state.

As Brittas came under attack from the Congress in Kerala following Pradhan's statement in the Rajya Sabha a day earlier, the CPI(M) also came to his defence, stating that he had acted in accordance with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan's request to all MPs from Kerala to work together to secure central funds owed to various departments of the state government.

"John Brittas showed the initiative to implement that. I appreciate it," state Education Minister V Sivankutty said at a press conference here.

Defending his actions, Brittas said that it was his job to act as a "bridge" in the interests of Kerala and not become a "hurdle".

The Congress, on the other hand, contended that Brittas' actions have "exposed" the BJP-CPI(M) relationship.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) chief Sunny Joseph said that Brittas was not the "bridge" between the BJP and the CPI(M), but a "power broker".

The KPCC chief also claimed that the Left MP was tasked by the CM to do whatever the BJP wanted, while keeping the CPI leaders, ministers and the Left front in the dark about signing the PM SHRI memorandum of understanding (MoU).

On Thursday, Sivankutty hit back at the Congress, accusing it of having "double standards" on the Pradhan Mantri Schools for Rising India (PM SHRI) scheme.

The Kerala minister said that Congress-ruled states implemented the PM SHRI and received crores of funds from the Centre.

However, when it came to Kerala, the Congress MPs from here were plotting to block the central funds from reaching the state, he alleged.

He claimed that the Centre has unjustly withheld over Rs 1,000 crore that the state was entitled to under the Samagra Shiksha Kerala (SSK).

Sivankutty contended that the main reason for the weakening of the opposition consensus at the national level regarding the PM SHRI scheme is that Congress governments have approved it.

He also accused AICC general secretary K C Venugopal of being instrumental in the implementation of PM SHRI in Congress-ruled states, which then received crores of funds from the Centre.

The CPI(M) leader said that he and Brittas met Pradhan several times to get the funds under SSK for the state.

"People will surely realise that the UDF MPs, who are unwilling to speak out against the central government's approach of denying mid-day meals and textbooks to poor and special-needs children in Kerala, are trying to criticise those who are working in the interests of the state," Sivankutty said.

Brittas, defending his stand, told reporters in Delhi that he will continuously meet central ministers and hold discussions to ensure Kerala gets the funds it is entitled to.

He too contended that Venugopal was the one who ensured that Congress-ruled states implemented the PM SHRI scheme and got crores of central funds.

"I held discussions for disbursal of funds under SSK that were withheld by the Centre and not on PM SHRI," Brittas claimed.

The entire controversy was kicked off a day ago by Pradhan when he remarked in the Rajya Sabha that Brittas "mediated" with the Kerala government and the Centre on the PM SHRI.

"My dear friend John Brittas, I am very thankful to him as he created the bridge between the governments of Kerala and India. At one point of time, they (Kerala) agreed to sign the PM SHRI MoU. Later on, what compelled them (to withdraw from it) I do not know.

"They (Left) are facing a dilemma within themselves. Due to their internal contradictions, they are not implementing the PM SHRI," he said.

The internal contradiction that Pradhan referred to was the strong opposition to the scheme by the CPI, a major ally of the CPI(M).

Meanwhile, the CPI has not reacted to the remark by Pradhan about Brittas' role in the signing of the PM SHRI MoU by Kerala initially.

It was due to the strong pressure from the CPI that the Kerala government put on hold the implementation of the PM SHRI in the state after signing the MoU. PTI HMP ADB