The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), following its sweeping win in Punjab, is trying hard to expand its footprint into other parts of the country. To this end, popularising the ‘Delhi Model’ is the spine of the strategy. Modernisation of government schools is one of the main points of the ‘Delhi Model’.
But, AAP leader Atishi Marlena’s tweet on Saturday that Kerala Education Department officials visited the National Capital to understand the Delhi Model of education was met with a strong retort from Kerala’s minister for Education and Labour, Vasudevan Sivankutty.
Instant retort
Sivankutty refuted Atishi’s claims by posting on his Twitter timeline on Sunday that Kerala had not sent anybody to Delhi. “Kerala’s Dept of Education has not sent anyone to learn about the ‘Delhi Model’. At the same time, all assistance was provided to officials who had visited from Delhi to study the ‘Kerala Model’ last month. We would like to know which ‘officials’ were welcomed by the AAP MLA.”
https://twitter.com/VSivankuttyCPIM/status/1518121104996544512?t=aeeHTJnd6RYqnkQephhzhQ&s=08
On Saturday, the AAP leader had shared a post on Twitter stating that she had met educationists and dignitaries who expressed the desire to implement ‘Delhi Model’ of curriculum in their schools.
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Atishi wrote on Twitter, “It was wonderful to host officials from Kerala at one of our schools in Kalkaji. They were keen to understand and implement our education model in their state.” She even referred to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s idea of nation building and development through collaboration.
AAP government statement
The Indian Express, quoting an AAP government statement, had said that one of the educationists, Victor T I, the regional secretary of CBSE School Management Association, Kerala, had written to Atishi about the possibility of learning more about the transformation of the Delhi government’s schools. The AAP statement added that Atishi explained in detail the various steps and initiatives such as empowering head of schools, establishing a framework for mentor teachers and enhancing community participation in the upkeep of schools, that have been crucial in turning around the state of government schools in Delhi. “Taking note of the complete range of policy reforms and key decisions that the Delhi government has undertaken in the last seven years, the dignitaries visited classrooms to gather a more comprehensive understanding,” it said.
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However, Sivankutty’s response on twitter has put a shadow of doubt on the veracity of the AAP government’s statement and Atishi’s tweet that followed. How the AAP responds to this embarrassment will be seen with interest.