THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The UDF leadership has decided to stop live protests and agitations owing to the spurt in COVID-19 cases. The UDF, especially the Muslim League and the Congress, had faced the wrath of the LDF government for unleashing widespread protests by their youth organizations against higher education minister K T Jaleel demanding his resignation.
Talking to reporters at Indira Bhavan, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala said the decision was taken after holding telephonic talks with UDF allies. Almost a dozen KSU leaders including KSU state president K M Abhijith were diagnosed with COVID-19 following their Secretariat march.
Chennithala informed that as a responsible Opposition, they don’t have any qualms in taking a decision to stop all their live protests against the state government when the state is witnessing a difficult situation due to the spread of COVID-19. But he maintained that the protests against the LDF government will continue by maintaining COVID-19 health protocols.
“The UDF has been urging the state government to increase the number of COVID-19 tests. Once the test numbers were increased, there has been a huge surge in cases. We have also decided to postpone the protest to be held on November 5 in all the Assembly constituencies. The Opposition will render all support to the LDF government in whatever decision they take to curb COVID-19,” said Chennithala.
The Opposition leader also came down heavily against CPM secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan for opposing a CBI probe into the Life Mission scam. He alleged that he is scared of the CBI probe for fear of his son, Bineesh Kodiyeri, being nabbed by the Narcotics Control Bureau in the Bengaluru drug case.
“The vigilance probe ordered by the LDF government is nothing but a damp squib. The way in which the vigilance investigation team had seized the files from the Secretariat on the sly under the cover of darkness is dubious. When did the Secretariat become a centre of the underworld? If there are no anomalies in the Life Mission scam, why should they fear a CBI probe? Kodiyeri is questioning the reliability of the central agencies for fear of the investigators leading the probe to his son,” said Chennithala.