It’s difficult to imagine a more ruthless political hatchet job. Kerala’s former Health Minister K. K. Shailaja was seen by many as the face of Kerala’s initially very successful fight against the Covid-19 and won re-election by a record 61,000 votes. But just when she was being hailed as a potential future chief minister, she was summarily ejected from the Kerala state cabinet. Kerala’s new Great Helmsman, Pinarayi Vijayan, may have bungled, though, by dropping Shailaja who's been a popular politician and moreover is one of the few prominent women in Indian politics. By evening #BringbackShailajaTeacher was trending on Twitter with over 11,000 likes and 90,000 likes on Instagram. Distinguished Malayalam writer N. S. Madhavan, who's also a keen political observer said: “Dropping @shailajateacher would create huge perceptional problems nationally and internationally. Sincerely wish there will be a rethink on this issue – still there is time.”