Kozhikode

K. Surendran on Friday said the education portfolio in Kerala should not be allotted to the Indian Union Muslim League, asserting that such an important department should be handled by a national political party.

Speaking to reporters in Kozhikode, the former state president of the Bharatiya Janata Party said the party has consistently maintained that the education department should not be entrusted to what he described as a religious-based political organisation.

Surendran alleged that whenever the IUML had handled the education ministry in the past, several controversies and allegations had surfaced, adding that the public would judge that record.

He also claimed that the IUML was exerting influence within the United Democratic Front on key issues, including the selection of the next chief minister.

Calling it “pressure politics,” Surendran said such developments were not in the interest of the state.

He further alleged that if the UDF forms the government, it could come under the influence of the IUML and Jamaat-e-Islami, claiming that signs of such influence were already visible in the post-election political developments.

Surendran, who contested from Manjeshwar in the recent Assembly elections, was defeated by A.K.M. Ashraf of the IUML.

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Despite his defeat, the BJP managed to secure three seats in the Kerala Assembly elections.