‘Kadakku purathu’: Law college professor’s use of this phrase riles CPM student wing

'Kadakku purathu', which can be translated as 'get out', was used by CM Pinarayi Vijayan last year when he rudely asked journalists to leave a conference room in which he was slated to hold discussions with the RSS leadership over political killings

The incident took place on February 23 during a seminar on ‘media and censorship’ at the Government Law College in Kozhikode. (Express photo)

A question raised by a law college professor during a seminar in Kozhikode has drawn the ire of the CPM student wing as they say it denigrates the government machinery and chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan. During the seminar, AK Mariama, a professor, in an interaction with students asked the question, “Who said ‘kadakku purathu’?” A student promptly answered ‘Pinarayi Vijayan’ and was congratulated by the professor. The incident took place on February 23 during a seminar on ‘media and censorship’ at the Government Law College in Kozhikode. It was part of a three-day seminar series at the university, in which students from other colleges also took part.

For the uninitiated, ‘kadakku purathu’, which can be translated as ‘get out’, was used by CM Pinarayi Vijayan last year when he rudely asked journalists to leave a conference room in which he was slated to hold discussions with the RSS leadership over political killings. Vijayan was not pleased with the presence of the media inside the room. The comment was widely panned by the journalist fraternity and began to be used to mock Vijayan especially on social media platforms.

The SFI complaint to the office of the chief secretary and the Higher Education Council

Now, the same phrase, used by the law college professor during the seminar, has riled the SFI, student wing of the CPM, at the university. The SFI has lodged a complaint with the office of the chief secretary and the Higher Education Council, alleging that the professor’s question had no relevance to the subject of the seminar and was used to purposely malign the image of the state government and the CM. The complaint seeks action against the professor and the college principal for violating service rules.

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“While four of the questions she asked students were related to media and its history, the question about the term ‘kadakku purathu’ has no relevance to the subject. Being a government employee, the professor shouldn’t mix politics in academic affairs. It is a clear violation of her service rules,” said Sreejul P, an SFI leader and general secretary of the students union.

A professor at the college also confirmed the incident. “I didn’t attend the seminar but it is true that the question was posed to a student. So far, we haven’t gotten a complaint from SFI but I heard they sent it to the higher education council. The seminar talked about restrictions on media and historical perspectives,” said Lawwel, an assistant professor at the college. Professor Mariama was unavailable for comment

The KSU, student wing of the Congress, said on its Facebook page that the SFI wanted to impose censorship on the people. “SFI has no right to decide who should say what. It is condemnable that the SFI wants to impose censorship on the media and the people,” the statement said.

The SFI’s complaint comes after the college authorities reportedly took action against some of its members during a clash with KSU members. SFI’s move against the principal and the professor should be seen as revengeful, the KSU alleged.

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