Kerala - Alappuzha   

Anti-mining stir getting divided on political lines

By Our Staff Reporter

ALAPPUZHA, SEPT. 29. The agitation against the move to allow a joint sector company to mine mineral sand from the coastal areas of Alappuzha district is likely to take a new turn in the coming days with the agitating groups getting polarised on political lines.

Leaders of the United Democratic Front (UDF), who were opposed to mining, approved the recent decision of the State Government to freeze the no-objection certificate given by the Industries Department to the company and withdrew from the agitation.

LDF stand

But the Left Democratic Front does not seem to be convinced about the sincerity of the Government decision. The CPI(M) leaders here said the Government should revoke the move permanently and that the agitation would continue till then. The All-Party Coordination Committee, which organised agitations against the move to grant mine mineral sand, seems to be dissolved. A recent meeting called by the Alappuzha MP, K.S. Manoj, to discuss the issue, was attended by LDF constituents and some social organisations only.

Going by the list of leaders who attended the meeting called by Dr. Manoj, the Kerala Congress(Joseph), which is a constituent of the LDF, did not attend the meeting.

Congress opinion

The Congress leaders, who had taken a strong stand against mining, meanwhile, pointed out that the stand of the CPI(M) was full of inconsistencies and that the outbursts of certain CPI(M) leaders had political overtones. Further, they were using the issue to sideline some of the top CPI(M) leaders in the context of the coming party elections, they alleged. The Congress leaders pointed out that while the CPI(M) central committee member, M.A. Baby, was demanding a total ban on mining, the Leader of the Opposition, V.S. Achuthanandan, had recently said that mining could be undertaken in the public sector. The Congress leaders said that a section of CPI(M) leaders was now planning an agitation that was aimed at diverting the attention of the public from the factionalism in the CPI(M), and to gain an upper hand in the party.

IUML stance

Meanwhile, the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) unit in the district welcomed the former MP, V.M. Sudheeran's decision to stay away from a meeting called by Dr. Manoj to fight against any move to allow mining. The IUML Alappuzha district general secretary, B.A. Razzaq, in a statement here said that his party viewed Mr. Sudheeran's stand as a sign of his unwillingness to fight against the UDF Government jointly with the LDF.

Mr. Razzaq demanded that the Alappuzha district liaison committee of the UDF meet immediately to discuss the issue. He said Mr. Sudheeran should also be requested to attend the meeting.

Meanwhile, the Akhila Kerala Dheevara Sabha, which has a considerable following among the fishermen community of the district, has questioned the right of the CPI(M) to organise an agitation against mining. The sabha State general secretary, V. Dinakaran, said the CPI(M) leaders did not have a common opinion and they were fooling the public. He clarified that the Dheevara Sabha would fight against the move to allow mining on its own and not jointly with the CPI(M).

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Anti-mining stir getting divided on political lines

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