Hitting out against the opposition, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that they should not behave with vengeance regarding the rice distribution issue. Accusing Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala of lying and misleading the Election Commission to deprive Keralites of their livelihood, the Chief Minister demanded that the opposition should not resort to retaliation.
“We were able to prevent people from starving during the Covid-19 pandemic, and none of this is free as these are the people’s rights. The distribution of food kits did not start when the election was announced. It was decided earlier that the distribution would be completed by March,” said Pinarayi Vijayan, adding that the government would not back down from the decision. The CM also clarified that the Opposition Leader’s allegation that pensions for May were also being distributed alongside the April pension was a lie. “It is the pension for March,” the CM explained.
Meanwhile, AICC general secretary KC Venugopal said that the UDF has not tried to deprive anyone of food. The allegation that the opposition was against the distribution of the kit is not true, he said, adding that the UDF opposed the government decision to delay the food kit distribution to garner votes during the election season. KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran reiterated similar claims, adding that the opposition had been against the government’s use of the food kits to hoodwink the people of Kerala.
