Palakkad NDA candidate Sobha Surendran addressed a protest dharna held outside Government Medical College, Palakkad on Saturday.
A unique protest was held outside the Palakkad Government Medical College on Saturday, highlighting the institution’s long-standing developmental challenges.
Vinodini, a nine-year-old girl from Pallassana, started the protest by laying a symbolic wreath on the college. The gesture was touching as she had lost her arm a few months back following complications arising from treatment for a fracture at a government district hospital.
Organized by the Palakkad Government Medical College Samara Samiti, the protest highlighted the perceived indifference of the government and bureaucracy towards the growth of the school. Established in 2014 and functioning under the state SC-ST development department, the college has faced major constraints, with officials widely blamed for its limited development.
The Samara Samiti invited Palakkad candidates from the United Democratic Front (UDF), National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and Left Democratic Front (LDF) to address the dharna and outline their vision for the institution.
Of the invited candidates, only NDA candidate Sobha Surendran turned up and laid a symbolic wreath expressing solidarity with the protesters and promising to work to remove obstacles to the school’s progress.
Samara Samiti president Arumughan Pathichira, presiding over the event, said that the response of the UDF and LDF candidates would be carefully noted. General Convener Raymant Antony delivered the keynote address.
Palakkadan district secretary Karshaka Munnettam Sajeesh Kuthanoor and activists Raghu Mathur, KR Mahesh and Balachandran Pothayankadu also spoke.
Published – 21 March 2026 21:27 IST
