Kerala - Alappuzha   

Industrial lobbies using money power: Achuthanandan

Staff Reporter

Says people have realised their designs

ALAPPUZHA: Leader of the Opposition V.S. Achuthanandan has said that big industrial lobbies and top politicians with vested interests have pumped in huge funds to the Malampuzha Assembly constituency, where he is contesting the April 29 elections, to influence voters against him.

He has also said that the Left Democratic Front will get a majority in all seats that went to polls in the first phase of elections on Saturday.

Answering questions from presspersons in his house at Paravoor in the Ambalappuzha constituency after voting, Mr. Achuthanandan said owners of iron and steel units in Palakkad nursed a grudge against him for helping their workers form trade unions and opposing environmental pollution caused by these industries. Similarly the soft-drink lobby was also against him for lending support to the agitation against a Coca-Cola unit at Plachimada. He said some top political leaders wanted to defeat him for his agitations against their efforts to sell public wealth to private groups. All those forces were flooding the constituency with money.

Mr. Achuthanandan said not only Left Democratic Front workers but also independent voters of Malampuzha had realized the designs of vested interest groups and would defeat them.

He said the campaign of the United Democratic Front that it had made a last-minute surge and would win the elections was a lie aimed at creating confusion among the public. The ruling Front had engaged in such campaigns in the past also and the present one would also fail.

He said the order of the Kerala High Court permitting the Government to sign the agreement for Smart City project would not allow the latter to do so as another case against inking the pact was before a Division Bench of the court.

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