THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: BJP views the past four years of LDF rule as a period which saw minimum industrial growth in the state. Realising that the LDF is on a sticky wicket on the industrial front, BJP has demanded that the LDF government release a white paper on the new industrial projects that have been launched during its tenure.
According to BJP state president K Surendran, the LDF rule not only witnessed industrial stagnation but also saw NRI entrepreneurs committing suicide due to harassment and red tape. He said the LDF rule was synonymous with lack of development and also triggered a deep economic crisis in the state.
The LDF, which rode to power highlighting the UDF’s extravagance and corruption, adopted the same path once they assumed power, Surendran said. Within weeks of assuming office, a minister of the LDF government had to step down facing charges of corruption. The government indulged in large-scale extravagance by according cabinet rank to the Chief Whip and by creating a number of unnecessary posts, he said. BJP is of the view that the LDF and UDF are in a tacit understanding - a reason why the Left goes slow on cases of corruption carried out during the previous government’s tenure.
To cover up its corruption, the government has silenced the Vigilance Department. “The real culprits of the Palarivattom flyover scam are going scot-free due to government patronage,” Surendran said. The Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) has become a symbol of rampant corruption. Even the Comptroller and Auditor General’s office is kept away from scrutinising the dealings of KIIFB, he said.
According to the BJP president, the LDF government has made itself an object of ridicule by re-branding and claiming as its own various schemes of the Union Government. “It was the Narendra Modi government which took the initiative to complete the Kollam and Alappuzha bypass, the work of which was stalled by both LDF and UDF Governments for over 45 years,” Surendran said.
According to the saffron party, Kerala has received Central assistance like never before after the Narendra Modi Government assumed power. "It was the centre that gave 42 per cent of the tax share to the states. It also enhanced GST share to the state. The MGNREGS share to the state was allocated in advance. For the first time, the state was provided Rs 4,000 crore to tide over the fiscal deficit. The intervention of the centre in helping Kerala increase its borrowing limit also proved beneficial for the state," said Surendran.
The LDF government, on the other hand, has tried to torpedo many central projects that were launched for the common man. The LDF fiercely opposed the PM Jan Dhan Yojana. The Left also tried to scuttle projects like the Kisan Samman Nidhi and Ujjwal Yojana that provided free LPG connection for the poor. The LDF government also diverted funds provided by the centre in the wake of the Ockhi cyclone and the 2018 flood.
Surendran said that the Chief Minister should clarify what happened to the much-touted Rebuild Kerala Initiative. "In Kerala, it’s all talk and no development. It is due to the Centre’s assistance that the state is able to sustain itself. To ensure that Kerala does not lose out on development post-Covid-19, a new development vision is needed," Surendran said.