Former Kerala Chief and veteran Congress leader Oommen Chandy said that the Left Democratic Front’s (LDF) claim on pension and free food kit is incorrect.
The senior Congress leader also said that the government’s claims of giving pensions to 34 to 54 lakh people is not credible as several pension applications are still pending. “It is not the number of people who buy pensions but the number of pensions that are being propagated,” Chandy said.
While many surveys are claiming that the LDF will retain power in Kerala, several leaders in the state are not paying much heed to surveys. Chandy said that he had nothing to say about surveys. Earlier, opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala hit out against mainstream media for their pre-poll survey ahead of the Kerala Assembly elections. He alleged that it is the media’s thanks to the LDF government for the Rs 200 Crore advertisement, and such a quid-pro-quo is not media ethics. He added that many of the pre-poll surveys, which predict the LDF returning to power, are an effort to whitewash the many corruptions of the government.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan also encouraged caution against pre-poll surveys, claiming that they are only “opinions” and “that they could change”.
Meanwhile, Chandy claimed that the LDF initially refused to continue the free distribution of food kit started by the UDF government. He criticised the Kerala government for not providing free food kits to the poor. The former Chief Minister claimed that while the UDF had given free food kits to all BPL cardholders, the Left government was charging Rs 2 for the same.
Earlier, the Leader of Opposition had claimed that the Vijayan government is violating the code of conduct and attempting to influence voters by distributing kits for Vishu just before the assembly polls.
However, Vijayan hit back saying that the distribution of kits is not for votes. “Has the opposition leader forgotten that Easter is on April 4? Vishu and Ramzan are coming How can the opposition think that people should suffer at such times? The distribution of food kits are not for votes,” Vijayan said.
