Kerala chief secretary Sarada Muraleedharan has called out discrimination she faced on the basis of colour and gender, as she condemned remarks comparing her tenure to that of her predecessor.
“Heard an interesting comment yesterday on my stewardship as chief secretary – that it is as black as my husband’s was white,” Muraleedharan said in a social media post on Tuesday in reference to a recent remark about her work being compared with that of her husband, V Venu. The 1990-batch IAS officer had immediately succeeded Venu as the chief secretary of Kerala in August 2024.
The chief secretary, in her post, questioned the comments made against her about her complexion and her gender. “It was about being labelled black (with that quiet sub text of being woman), as if that were something to be desperately ashamed of,” she said.
“I have lived for over 50 years buried under that narrative of not being a colour that was good enough. And buying into that narrative. Of not seeing beauty or value in black. Of being fascinated by fair skin. And fair minds, and all that was fair and good and wholesome. And of feeling that I was a lesser person for not being that – which had to be compensated somehow,” Muraleedharan said.
Muraleedharan said that she wrote the post following “relentless parade of comparisons” with that of her predecessor. “Why did I want to call this particular one out? I was hurt, yes. But then these last seven months have been a relentless parade of comparisons with my predecessor, and I have become quite inured,” she said.
The top bureaucrat said she will not reveal the name of the person who made the comment about her, but added that the issue needed to be discussed in all circles.
“I was shocked when I heard that comment. Comparisons with my husband are common, but to do that using black and white was disturbing. What motivated me to write the Facebook post was that if someone could wage a battle against the discrimination towards black colour, it would be me sitting in this position,” she told reporters on Wednesday.
“The tendency to use colour as a weapon to exploit the self-respect of another person must be resisted. We must not fall into such traps and we must convince ourselves that we are above such thinking. We should be able to assimilate the colour we are and proudly declare that we are happy to be (that colour),” she added.
Kerala general education V Sivankutyy on Wednesday said the chief secretary’s post “sheds light on the challenges faced by individuals subject to prejudices”. “Expressing solidarity with Smt. Sarada Muraleedharan, emphasising that discrimination based on skin colour has no place in progressive Kerala,” he said in a social media post. “Their leadership dedication to public service is exemplary, and we must work together to foster an inclusive environment where individuals are valued for their contributions to society.”
Excise and local self government minister MB Rajesh said, “It is shocking that the state’s chief secretary had to face discrimination based on colour. It is proof of how afflicted the Kerala’s society has become.”
CPI(M) Lok Sabha MP K Radhakrishnan said the incident was proof that “realities of caste and colour” exists in society even today.
Leader of Opposition in the Kerala assembly VD Satheesan shared Muraleedharan’s post, saying: “Salute dear Sarada Muraleedharan. Every word you write is heart touching. Needs to be discussed…”