THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Strong opposition from Industries Minister P K Kunhalikutty to the candidate proposed by the Congress as chairman of Kerala Press Academy delayed the announcement of academy chairpersons scheduled for Wednesday.Sources in the UDF said that discussions between Congress and Muslim League to reach a consensus on Press Academy chairman had not become successful yet.Senior journalist N P Rajendran was named by the Congress as the chairman of the Kerala Press Academy. Along with Congress, Rajendran also got the support of Socialist Janata Democratic. But, the proposal irked Kunhalikutty who is of the view that it was the leadership of Rajendran which had aggravated the protests by journalists against him during the last UDF Government.Rajendran had been the president of the Kozhikode Press Club when the ice cream parlour case resurfaced and was actively involved in the leadership of journalists who had protested against the high-handedness of Muslim League cadre against journalists.Rajendran’s public statement about a secret talk between Kunhalikutty and negotiators regarding the role of his party in the Marad massacre had also become controversial those days.With the decision on Press Academy chairman getting delayed, the decision on the heads of other similar institutions such as Kerala Lalithakala Academy and Kerala Cartoon Academy also was postponed. Following the criticism levelled by the constituents after the unilateral announcements of Perumbadavam Sreedharan as the chairman of Kerala Sahitya Academy and Priyadarshan as the chairman of Kerala Chalachitra Academy, the UDF leadership has decided to hold consultations with all constituents about the heads of other cultural bodies. With Rajendran almost on the way out from the list, the search for another eligible candidate for the post has also begun.
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