February 20, 2023 11:55 pm | Updated February 21, 2023 12:03 am IST – Thiruvananthapuram
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan hands over the party flag to CPI(M) State secretary M.V. Govindan to mark the inauguration of the Janakeeya Prathirodha Yatra at Kumbla in Kasaragod on Monday.
In a sharp attack yet again on the Jamaat-e-Islami Hind (JIH) for the talks it held with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh in January, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan demanded that the Muslim outfit come clean on what had transpired in the negotiations.
He was inaugurating CPI(M)’s Janakeeya Prathirodha Yatra led by State secretary M. V. Govindan from Kasaragod on Monday.
He said some within the Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leadership are openly backing JIH and its political front, Welfare Party of India, which raises many questions.
Mr. Vijayan demanded a clarification if the so-called new trio of Congress-Welfare Party- IUML had any role in the discussions that JIH had with the RSS. A section in the Congress was known to follow a “soft approach” towards the BJP. At the same time, despite many Muslim organisations openly slamming JIH, a powerful section of the IUML was in favour of holding hands with the Welfare Party of India.
Launching an all-out attack on the Congress-led United Democratic Front for turning a blind eye towards the Centre’s “neglect and ill treatment” of Kerala, he accused the Opposition of toeing the BJP line. The UDF, aided by a section of Right-wing media, had unleashed a misinformation campaign against the State government, with scant regard for how the Centre’s anti-federal policies had made life difficult for ordinary citizens of the State, he alleged.
‘Divisive politics’
The Centre was intent on turning the entire focus of the people towards promoting divisive politics and inflaming communal passion to divert attention from livelihood issues. Yet, the Congress, which claims to be secular, was in fact aiding the Centre through their silence, Mr. Vijayan claimed.
He took exception to the manner in which the UDF and a large section of the language media, which he accused of being subservient to the Sangh Parivar, had been campaigning against the State Budget and thus maligning the State. The UDF’s campaign that Kerala was facing financial doom was misleading and the recent State Budget was one that provided maximum relief and succour to all sections of society, he claimed.
Meanwhile, Mr. Govindan said the party will not tolerate criminality and corruption in the rank and file. He also said the people would reject the Congress-BJP campaign to demonise Mr. Vijayan and his family.
The march will cover all the 140 constituencies in Kerala and conclude in the State capital on March 18.
