Thiruvananthapuram: Education Minister V Sivankutty has convened an emergency meeting of officials following controversies over the appointment of filmmakers as judges for drama and mimicry competitions at the State School Arts Festival. The minister has sought a detailed explanation from the officials and plans to discuss stricter guidelines for selecting judges.

The controversy arose after filmmakers M A Nishad and Sohan Seenulal were appointed as judges for the drama and mimicry competitions, respectively. Seenulal is also the son of a CPM Ernakulam district committee member. Although Nishad was initially assigned to judge the high school drama competition scheduled for Tuesday, reports suggest he was removed after theatre artists protested against his appointment.

Further criticism has been raised regarding the alleged lower remuneration for judges evaluating Adivasi and tribal art forms compared to other competitions. This issue will also be addressed in the minister’s meeting.

The evaluation of the high school boys’ Mappilapattu competition has also sparked controversy. Teachers and parents alleged that the judges lacked adequate qualifications and understanding of the technical aspects of Mappilapattu. Out of 14 participants, seven received an A grade, while the remaining seven were awarded a B grade, drawing criticism from Mappilapattu musicians and lyricists who were present at the event.