THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Coming out with a new abbreviation for the LDF -- "Lowest Development, Highest Fraud" -- Congress general secretary Randeep Singh Surjewala trained his guns on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Wednesday. Speaking to reporters at Indira Bhavan, Surjewala said Pinarayi, who is addressed by his party as the 'Captain' of the LDF, is the "Captain of crime, corruption and callous rule". He alleged that the latest revelation in the deep sea fishing scam, which is an attack on the livelihood of fishermen, has spilled the beans on the LDF government’s complicity.
The Congress leader who is also the chairman of the communication department of the Congress alleged that Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his team have pushed the state into an abyss of total autocracy, rampant corruption and uncontrolled crime.
"The Captain's team has also won a gold trophy of smuggling allegations, landing at the doorsteps of the Chief Minister. Kerala which is known as India's capital of harmony has since been converted into capital of crime by the LDF. The health sector is unbridled with maladministration and corruption pushing the state to the brink of ill health," said Surjewala.
He also informed that the Consulate General of India in New York had conducted an extensive inquiry about the US firm involved in the deep sea fishing scam and sent the necessary intimation to the LDF government on 21 October, 2019. This was revealed on the floor of the Lok Sabha on 17th March, 2021.
Surjewala also claimed that the MoU between the state government and Kerala State Inland Navigation Corporation on the Rs 5000 crore deal is still there on their website which reveals that the contract has not yet been cancelled. The senior Congress leader also criticized the tacit understanding between Pinarayi Vijayan and Union home minister Amit Shah.
“The constant stalling, the almost fixed match of allegations and counter allegations between the Chief Minister and Amit Shah and refusal to submit to an independent probe raises serious suspicion in this entire murky saga of gold smuggling. Can a government and the Chief Minister mired by such serious allegations deserve to stay in power even for a second?" asked Surjewala.