#Ajayan
To discern the readiness of rice, it is only a singular grain that’s picked. Amidst the unfolding narrative of the Kerala Government, the chosen grain metamorphoses into the Culture Minister Saji Cheriyan. Adrift in the tumultuous sea of controversies, he navigates with the inadvertent eloquence of foot-in-mouth, landing both his party CPI(M) and its Government in a dilemma. Regrettably, the robust support from the party and the Government, despite the controversies, amplifies his presence, making him a symbolic embodiment of the collective.
This time it was the Christian leaders attending Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Christmas soiree who found themselves the target of his incongruous remarks. He accused them of maintaining an uncharacteristic silence regarding the upheaval in Manipur, and having "goosebumps" when they indulged in the “offerings of cakes and libations (wine) made from the essence of grapes”. Pushing the narrative further, he asserted that the invitation was a strategic ploy to amass votes, contending that the Christian community, dispersed across the nation, is no more than a minority with numerical dimensions deemed fit for autorickshaw travel. However, the intriguing paradox remains unexplored – the transformation of his political party, once sprawling across the nation, now led by leaders of his calibre, confined to a diminutive minority enclave within the coastal borders of Kerala.
Going back on what he utters is nothing novel to him. While he initially got the backing from his Chief Minister, things appeared to be turning against his party when Church leaders rose in arms. One of the leaders even said Christians would in no way cooperate with the Government unless Cheriyan withdrew his remarks. Also, the Church would attend meetings convened by any political leader, be it the CM or the PM, and they attended the CM’s party on Wednesday, a day after Cheriyan convened a press conference and said he was withdrawing his ‘wine and cake’ remark, if the Church found it insulting. When the media pressed him further, he said he was also withdrawing his ‘goosebump’ comment, but was firm on his political stand.
Saji Cherian has unfailingly embraced the role of a solitary figure veering towards the unfavourable. Amidst the deluge of the 2018 floods in Kerala, he seized the spotlight, vocalizing rescue pleas in Chenganoor, even casting a discerning gaze upon the authorities, which he later swallowed.
Merely a year ago, he vehemently confronted the constitutional fabric, which cost him his ministership. He claimed that India had penned down the Constitution prepared by the British. He posited that the Constitution had, over the past 75 years, been an instrument to "exploit the maximum number of people in the country". Employing colloquial nuances, he likened democracy and secularism, as enshrined in the Constitution, to a "kuntham" (spear) and "kudachakram" (umbrella spoke). Eventually, when the Governor stepped in, Saji was compelled to step down from office, though he managed a comeback after a brief hiatus.
Saji got entangled in a controversy when he cast aspersions on the morality of Anupama Chandran who had leveled accusations against the CPI(M) and her own parents. She had asserted that they had coercively separated her from her newborn child for adoption. The subsequent DNA test not only confirmed her biological connection to the infant but also underscored the gravity of the tumultuous situation.
In the fervour of the protest against the high-speed K-Rail proposal, Saji seamlessly boarded the contentious narrative. Asserting that he had meticulously perused the project Detailed Project Report, he confidently declared the absence of a buffer zone along the alignment. However, the following day, when his party secretary, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, emphatically affirmed the existence of a buffer zone, Saji exhibited no hesitation in conceding to his party leader's stance. This sudden reversal left people across Kerala bewildered, certainly not Saji, prompting introspection on the nature of the DPR he had purportedly studied and the depth of comprehension he had gleaned from it.
Saji again courted controversy during a public gathering, with his colleague, the Agriculture Minister, in attendance. In a threat to farmers who told the Minister that it would not be possible to go ahead with their farming activities if a canal was not constructed, Saji said that paddy cultivation was optional and if they did not grow it, it could be easily sourced from neighbouring Tamil Nadu or Andhra Pradesh. He appeared to have either forgotten or was unaware of the foundational roots of his own party, deeply intertwined with the historical struggles of farmers and labourers.
Regrettably, there seems to be a collective reluctance within the party, the government, and even the Chief Minister to address or rectify the demeanour and go to the extent of defending this lack of sensibility of Saji, entrusted to nurture Kerala's culture. In the shadow of such leadership, one cannot help but be reminded of the ‘terrible era’ and the calibre of those governing which Shakespeare reflects upon in Julius Caesar.
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