Pinarayi Vijayan's appointment of Gita Gopinath draws opposition from VS Achuthanandan

A deal he initiated with a Canadian firm for the renovation of three hydro-electric plants as Power Minister during 2006-2008 pushed Pinarayi Vijayan out of power politics in Kerala for a long spell. He returned to power as chief minister three decades later after a court cleared him of corruption charges slapped against him by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the controversial deal with the Canadian multinational firm, SNC Lavalin, in November 2013. Though his detractors within the party and outside used the case to stifle his political career, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader does not seem to have shown any wavering in his liberal approach. He has made his intentions clear by appointing Harvard economist Gita Gopinath, an advocate of neo-liberal policies that the Left parties oppose, as his economic advisor. The move has sparked protests not only from hardliners in the Left, but also Opposition Congress that ironically introduced the neo-liberal policies during its regime at the Centre. [caption id=“attachment_2919080” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] File image of Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan. PTI[/caption] While the Congress has confined its protests to mere statements, hard-line leader V S Achuthanandan has pursued his opposition to the move with the central leadership of the CPM, which itself is amazed by the appointment reportedly made by the chief minister without consulting them. In his letter to party general secretary Sitaram Yechury, the nonagenarian leader, who was sidelined for the chief minister’s post, has questioned the appointment saying that Gopinath’s neo-liberal positions are at odds with that of the CPM in particular and the Left in general. The former chief minister has cited Gopinath’s endorsement of the economic policies pursued by the last United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government and the present Narendra Modi government as a reflection of her neo-liberal economic agenda. Prominent Left wing economist Prabhat Patnaik, who served as vice-chairman of the State Planning Board during Achuthanandan’s term as chief minister from 2006 to 11, has also come out against the appointment saying that it may lead to a deviation from the Left’s pro-labour and pro-people economic strategies. The Communist Party of India (CPI), the second largest constituent of the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF), is also opposed to the appointment but the party leadership has opted to raise its reservations in the LDF forum. Political observers feel that if Achuthanandan pursues his opposition to the move to its logical conclusion, it could spell trouble for the chief minister, who was forced to withdraw the appointment of prominent lawyer M K Damodaran as his legal advisor under similar pressure. Kozhikode-based political analyst N P Chekutty does not rule out the possibility of Achuthanandan making use of the opportunity to harass Pinarayi. However, he doubts his strength to raise a banner of revolt against the chief minister by mobilising the hardliners in the party. Achuthanandan had succeeded in checking Pinarayi mainly with the support of CPM central leadership, which was overwhelmed by the mass support he mustered in the state. However, the central leadership started taking a neutral position after the standoff between the two led to a bitter faction feud in the party. The leadership under Prakash Karat sought to contain the factionalism by suspending the two from the politburo but it raged on with the nonagenarian leader giving it an ideological colour. Even though he continued the fight the “ideological deviations” by Pinarayi faction with mass support and the backing of some of the party’s allies like the CPI, Pinarayi fortified his position by crushing the supporters of Achuthanandan one by one. Achuthanandan started losing friends after he failed to stand by those who questioned the ideological deviations. While many quit the party and kept the ideology aloft by launching their own forums others were thrown out. Many started approaching the official faction led by Pinarayi following the brutal murder of rebel leader T P Chandrashekharan. Pinarayi had packed the state committee and secretariat with his supporters by the time he relinquished the post of the party’s state secretary after an 18-year stint. The brute majority he commanded in the two forums made the task easy for the central leadership in handing over the baton to Pinarayi after the assembly election. “The appointment of Gopinath will certainly revive the inner party ideological feud but I am sure Pinarayi will ultimately have his way. He has been keeping such a position and his decision to launch a television channel in 2000 itself and the way he co-opted wider sections outside party and even capitalists with this venture showed his determination to do what he thinks right,” says Chekutty. He told the Firstpost that the chief minister will have support from within the party and outside, including the West Bengal unit that ventured out into the new liberalised economic policy. “Despite setbacks they are still committed to this line. The Kerala leader is making use of this issue to harass Pinarayi and there is no substance in his arguments,” adds Chekutty. Moreover, he believes that the party in the state is slowly veering round to pragmatic approach. Many have started realizing that the state cannot progress by clinging on to the ideology. They feel that Kerala cannot shut itself out and then hope for the best for its future generations. It needs to move ahead and move fast. “For this the state needs to explore outside the familiar circles. People like Gopinath bring in expertise from the world outside and we will have to keep our eyes and ears open to the world outside,” says Chekutty. He believes that those criticising the appointment of Gopinath were deftly trying to confuse people by a malicious mixing of different issues-like her known positions on some economic initiatives and her views on some policies of Modi government and then juxtaposing it against the perceived economic positions of the CPM and the Left parties. The positive views she took on the central government’s economic initiatives and her disagreements with the known positions of the Left on some matters need not come in the way of her appointment since she is not part of the government and her advice is not binding on the government. Chekutty feels that the present move to oust her from the position is ill-conceived and it will surely backfire as a public relations disaster for the state, its chief minister and will not do any good for the people. Gopinath, who has roots in Kannur district of the state, has an impeccable academic record. She is John Zwaanstra Professor of International Studies and Economics at Harvard and the the third woman and the first Indian after Nobel laureate Amartya Sen to become a tenured professor at the Ivy League university. Gopinath, who is fluent in Malayalam, is unfazed by the raging controversy over her appointment. In a statement released through the CM’s office the other day, she said that her appointment was an honorary one and she will render her advice only when it is sought by the chief minister. The statement said that said she had no plans to shift her base to Thiruvananthapuran and she will continue in her role as a full-time professor at Harvard even as she does her best to fulfill the role the chief minister has handed to her.