The Hindu : Kerala / Kochi News : Antony a fake idealist: VS

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Antony a fake idealist: VS

Special Correspondent

KOCHI: Taking the personal sparring between him and Defence Minister A.K. Antony a step further, Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan on Friday alleged that Mr. Antony was a fake idealist.

At a news conference here, Mr. Achuthanandan said Mr. Antony was wearing the ‘idealist mask' while shutting his eyes to the large-scale corruption and swindling at the Centre.

In the past week, the two leaders have engaged in personal attacks against each other several times.

Referring to the Adarsh housing complex controversy, Mr. Achuthanandan claimed that it was Mr. Antony's Defence Ministry that was the most corrupt. While the then Maharashtra Chief Minister, tainted by the Adarsh scandal, had resigned but Mr. Antony had not bothered to do so; neither had he expressed regret.

Though Mr. Antony had quit as Kerala Chief Minister over Indira Gandhi's election from Chikmagalur, he had later chosen to stand like a rock behind her. The ‘idealist Mr. Antony' had chartered a flight from Delhi to Thiruvananthapuram to swear in as the Chief Minister after getting K. Karunakaran out and made the Kerala tax payer foot the Rs.16-lakh flight bill.

Asked about Mr.Antony's remark that the Chief Minister was acting like an Opposition leader, Mr. Achuthanandan went on elaborating his efforts to protect the forests and the Marayoor sandalwood plantation.

Because of his efforts, Mr. Achuthanandan claimed, the then Chief Minister Antony had to get the Mathikettan forests declared as a national park and thus saved 5,000 acres from K.M. Mani and his followers.

Mr. Achuthanandan termed it a lie Sonia Gandhi's allegation that the LDF government had not utilised the tsunami funds allotted to the State by the Centre.

The government had utilised Rs.1,440 crore for tsunami rehabilitation, he asserted. It was the former Chief Minister Oommen Chandy and his Minister K.M. Mani who had diverted tsunami funds for projects in Idukki and Wayanad.

The Chief Minister said the media should not act like ‘quotation' (paid criminals) gangs. A section of the media was doing exactly the same and they should not forget that the world would not come to an end once the election was over.

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