The Hindu : Kerala News : RSP(B) sees Congress, IUML, BJP tie-up

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Saturday, May 28, 2005

Kerala

Kerala

RSP(B) sees Congress, IUML, BJP tie-up

Special Correspondent

`Congress has lost confidence to face electorate'

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The RSP(B) leader, A.V. Thamarakshan, has alleged a clandestine tie-up between the Congress, Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) and BJP to enable the BJP to open its account in the State Assembly with the next election.

Prof. Thamarakshan told a news conference here today that the BJP vice-president, Venkiah Naidu's statement that the party would open its account and hit double digit in the Assembly was proof for the secret pact between the three parties. The UDF rule was taking the State from bad to worse and the Congress had little confidence to face the electorate on the UDF's own steam. Hence the tie-up with the BJP, he said.

The RSP(B) leader said that the State's public debt had hit a record Rs.43,000 crores and alleged that all sectors of the State economy were in the grip of a major crisis. The Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy, had little concern for the burning problems of the masses and his entire focus was on fancy projects such as Smart City. There was no truth in the argument that the State Government's deals were with the Dubai Government. The Dubai Internet City was nothing but a firm dealing in real estate, he said.

Prof. Thamarakshan said his party would campaign for the LDF in the Koothuparamba and Azikode Assembly byelection.

Chandy criticised

The RSP State secretary, T. J. Chandrachoodan, has termed the Chief Minister, Oommen Chandy's condemnation of the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption Bureau director, Upendra Varma's disclosures about corruption in the Government as an act undermining prople's right to information.

Prof. Chandrachoodan told a news conference here on Friday that the Chief Minister had, in effect, breached the recently passed Right to Information Act by reprimanding the VACB director for the statements he had made in reply to questions at a news conference. Under the new law, the VACB director is duty-bound to give proper answers to questions on corruption cases. The Chief Minister's vindictive attitude towards the VACB director for the disclosures he had made and his decision to stay away from the annual conference of the VACB were both wrong and inappropriate, the RSP leader said.

He recalled that the former DGP, Hormis Tharakan, had not faced so such consequence when he stated publicly that two-thirds of police personnel above the rank of DySP were corrupt and that he was having a hard time finding efficient officers to man key posts. The then Chief Minister had not reprimanded him for the statement because the DGP's motive was to clean up the force. Mr. Chandy's outburst against the VACB director showed that his Cabinet colleagues were angry with the corruption cases being handled by the bureau, Prof. Chandrachoodan said.

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