PM SHRI row rocks Kerala Assembly; govt says no decision taken, LDF stages walkout

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Assembly witnessed a heated debate on Wednesday over the Centre's PM SHRI school scheme, with General Education Minister N Samsudheen asserting that the UDF government had taken no decision to implement it, while the opposition LDF alleged that efforts were under way to facilitate its rollout in the state.

The confrontation erupted during discussion on an adjournment motion notice moved by CPI MLA P Prasad, following which the opposition staged a walkout after Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan denied leave for the motion. Rejecting the opposition's allegations, Samsudheen, also a leader of the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), said the government had neither signed any agreement with the Centre nor taken any decision regarding implementation of the scheme.

"We have not signed any MoU and no decision has been taken. A cabinet sub-committee is examining the issue and the government will take only a decision that protects Kerala's interests without surrendering to any Sangh Parivar agenda," he said. The minister alleged that it was the previous LDF government that had signed an agreement with the Centre, compromising the state's interests.

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"The allegations against us are intended to conceal their hypocrisy," he said. If the agreement could be withdrawn legally, why didn't the previous government approach the court? Why didn't you file a case," Shamsuddin asked. The minister further contended that the National Education Policy (NEP) had already been implemented in Kerala's higher education sector during the previous Left government's tenure.

Leader of Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan, however, strongly rejected the minister's contentions and said nothing had happened in terms of PM SHRI beyond signing an MoU which was put on hold by his government later. He said the Centre itself had informed the Supreme Court that the scheme was yet to be implemented in the state and had, in a communication dated May 8, 2026, urged Kerala to take urgent steps for its rollout.

"If PM SHRI had already been implemented, the Centre would not have made such a request," Vijayan claimed. The former chief minister alleged that the UDF government was now making moves to secretly implement the scheme. He said the previous LDF government had decided to freeze the memorandum of understanding signed with the Centre within 20 days as part of a policy decision and had not proceeded further.

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"Signing an MoU alone does not amount to implementation. No monitoring committees were constituted, no school lists were updated and not a single rupee was received under the scheme," Vijayan said. Describing PM SHRI as part of the BJP's political agenda, he alleged that the scheme was linked to efforts to introduce the Sangh Parivar's ideology through the education sector.

He also said the UDF goverment's handling of the PM SHRI issue was a "shameful surrender." Prasad, who moved the notice for the motion, alleged that the NEP undermined secularism and pluralism and claimed that PM SHRI was a "pet project of the RSS". He said it was "highly embarrassing" that Samsudheen, who is also an IUML leader, could not categorically state that the scheme would not be implemented in Kerala.

Taking a dig at IUML leaders, Prasad said those who had once vowed to throw PM SHRI into the Arabian Sea now appeared to be defending it. He also argued that the agreement signed by the previous government was only an in-principle MoU and lacked legal validity, while citing constitutional provisions and court rulings to challenge the government's claim that Kerala could not withdraw from it.

Samsudheen said the opposition request for adjournment motion on the matter need not be granted as it was based on speculation and maintained that no decision had been taken on implementation. Following the minister's reply, the Speaker rejected leave for the motion, prompting LDF members to stage a walkout in protest. The PM SHRI (PM Schools for Rising India) scheme is a centrally sponsored initiative aimed at developing selected schools as model institutions in line with the National Education Policy, 2020.

The issue has become a major political flashpoint in Kerala, with the LDF alleging that implementation of the scheme would amount to accepting the NEP, while the UDF government maintains that no decision has been taken and that the matter remains under examination.