Saji Cherian attempts to put speech controversy to rest

Former Minister Saji Cherian makes a statement in the Assembly under rule 64

Kerala Minister Saji Cherian resigned from the Left Democratic Front (LDF) cabinet over his alleged disparaging comments about the Constitution. File. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

Former Minister Saji Cherian, MLA, attempted to draw a line under the political controversy surrounding his allegedly "anti-Constitution" speech at Mallapally in Pathanamthitta in early July.

A three-minute video clip of his hour-long speech had gone viral, causing a public uproar and triggering anti-government protests. The alleged comment had cost Mr. Cherian his cabinet berth. It prompted the Congress and the Bharatiya Janata Party to demand his resignation as a legislator.

In a statement under rule 64 in the Assembly, Mr. Cherian sought to put the record straight. He said he was the victim of cherry-picking of facts and gross misinterpretation. He regretted having given room for opponents to unleash the propaganda.

Mr. Cherian said he resigned to uphold constitutional principles espoused by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) and to make way for a free and fair inquiry.

The United Democratic Front (UDF) Opposition had alleged that Mr. Cherian's purported statement that the Constitution was a British-crafted document that ill-served the people of India echoed Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh ideologue M.S. Golwalkar's line of thinking and a slur on Dr. B.R. Ambedkar, the revered architect of the founding document.

Social justice and welfare remained a distant dream for millions. Mr. Cherian said he had merely pointed out that many of the guarantees in the Constitution were not legally enforceable.

He had not denigrated Dr. Ambedkar. The legal luminary and statesman had opposed the British-sponsored and anti-worker Industrial Disputes Bill in the Mumbai Assembly. Dr. Ambedkar had worked hand in glove with the Communist movement for the proletarian cause. He had thrown the oppressive caste system into the dustbin of history.

Mr. Cherian said he had also spoken against the Centre-supported Sangh Parivar agenda to reverse the progress wrought by the renaissance movement and Left agrarian struggles.

“The Centre rejected Kerala’s proposal to depict the life and work of Sree Narayana Guru at the Republic Day pageantry. It revoked the special status granted to Jammu and Kashmir and imposed a police state. The Centre also pushed for anti-farmer laws and the patently anti-minority Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The CPI(M) was at the forefront of those historic struggles,” he said.

Mr. Cherian said his speech had revolved around themes such as the Centre's infringement on federalism and the requirement to strengthen the Constitution's secular, democratic, and federal foundations.