THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Though the CPM tried to conveniently distance itself from Law Academy agitation terming it as students stir during the first phase, the toughening of stand by allies like CPI and the agitation of a determined BJP has forced the party to look for an immediate solution. The party believes that Lakshmi Nair’s resignation would cool tempers besides paving the way for amicable resolution of the issue. With registration of case for casteist slur which is a non bailable offence, the CPM believes that the defiant principal will come under pressure to step down.
But with V.S. Achuthanandan formally asking the revenue minister E. Chandrashekharan to act against the Law Academy management for misusing land, the issue is unlikely to end with principal’s resignation. The veteran leader has also stated that the Law Academy agitation was not just a student stir but a people's issue. CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan had the other day termed the stir as student agitation and spoken against politicising it. Moreover he had categorically stated that the agitation was not a land struggle.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan is believed to have spoken to Koliyakode Krishnan Nair and asked him to sort out the Law Academy issue at the earliest. The chief minister has also entrusted education minister C. Raveendranath to hold discussions with stake holders. Many in the party fear that if Lakshmi Nair continued to remain defiant, the CPM will come under severe pressure from the agitating students and also rival parties to act.
BJP has already stolen a march over the CPM in the agitation with their senior leader V. Muraleedharan already observing an indefinite fast. The Congress has also threatened to take over the agitation if Cabinet failed to find a solution by Wednesday. K. Muraleedharan has announced that he would observe indefinite fast from February 2 demanding Lakshmi Nair's arrest. Clearly the CPM is getting increasingly isolated on the Law Academy agitation issue.
