General Minister of Education V. Sivankutty, along with the chairman of the Keral Congress (M) Jose K. Mani, met with Archbishop Changanassery Thomas Thararayil on Saturday. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Like the departure between the State Government and the Catholic Church, the appointment of teachers in assistance schools threatened to escalate in a fully blown confrontation, the government of the left democratic front (LDF) began to seek to converge before the upcoming elections.
As part of this step, the General Minister of Education V. Sivankuta Archbishop Thomas Tharayil of the Archdiocese of Changanassery met on Saturday. The Minister was accompanied by the chairman of Keral Congress (m) Jose K. Mani during a meeting with the prelate.
When he spoke to reporters after the meeting, Mr Sivankutty described it as a courtesy visit and added that wider problems related to general education were not discussed. He remembered that the Archbishop had visited his residence two months ago to deal with educational matters.
“The main minister has already explained in Nový Delhi that the question concerning the appointment of teachers will be resolved through the dialogue. The meeting was planned for 13 October and the matter will then be resolved,” the minister said.
Archbishop Tharyil, who commented on this matter, said that thousands of teachers working without salaries or daily wages were not only limited to Christian leadership. “We are glad that the state government under the leadership of the main minister is responding positively. The decision to organize a meeting to find a solution comes as a great relief,” he said.
He further noted that the government’s attitude indicated that this matter was not looking through the sectarian lens.
The meeting between the Minister and the Archbishop assumes importance as a result of the strong criticism of the Catholic Church about the attitude of the LDF government to appoint various candidates for auxiliary schools. The Church even expressed its dissatisfaction through an editorial in Deepice and warned that the unresolved complaints of teachers and ASHA workers could cause protests against the government.
The dispute stems from the rejection of the government to allow appointment from the general category in cases where vacancies reserved for differently affected candidates remain unoccupied in schools.
Congress Keral (M), ally ruling fronts, in the control regime of damage.
Published – October 11, 2025 17:44
