KK Shailaja, the former Health Minister of Kerala will not be a part of the Left-led government’s new cabinet. The Left Democratic Front, which defied tradition by winning a second consecutive term in the recent Assembly polls, will have a new cabinet in which no previous minister will be repeated. However, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is the only repeat. The state committee of the Marxist party, which met at its headquarters AKG Centre, elected Vijayan to lead the party, a CPI(M) statement said.
The party state committee, chaired by senior leader Elamaram Kareem, decided to entrust Shailaja with the position of party whip, the statement added.
No one from the earlier LDF ministry is part of the new ministry except for the Chief Minister. This is our party decision. Only our party has the courage to do so. Many top performers were also not allowed to contest elections. We want new faces, AN Shamsheer, a CPM MLA, told NDTV.
KK Shailaja’s exclusion has drawn sharp reactions on social media, even from rivals like Congress leader Shashi Tharoor.
Sorry to see Shailaja leave the Kerala cabinet. Aside from her reputed competence and efficiency, I always found her helpful, responsive and accessible as Health Minister, especially during the #Covid crisis. She will be missed,” Mr Tharoor, a Congress MP from Kerala, wrote on Twitter.
Editor-in-chief of The News Minute tweeted that the party has to explain this decision.
However, Twitter users accused the party of sexism.
Reports suggest those picked for the new cabinet are MV Govindan, KN Balagopal, K Radhakrishnan, VN Vasavan, P Rajeev, Saji Cherian, V Sivankutty, Mohd Riyas, Dr R Bindu, Veena George and V Abdul Rahman.