The Congress-led Government in Kerala has sparked off a controversy by making UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi the chief guest of the annual meet — and the only invitee from outside — of Kudumbashree women’s empowerment project.
Critics say that the move is proof of the ruling Congress’ efforts to bring Kudumbashree, launched by the State Government and coming under the local Self-Government bodies, under its total control.The BJP and the CPI(M) have launched an attack against Congress for inviting Sonia, who is just an MP holding no constitutional position, to inaugurate the 16th annual meet of the women’s self-empowerment group established in 1998 during the rule of the lDF led by Marxist party. The anniversary is being held from August 12 to 14 at Thiruvananthapuram.
“What is Sonia’s right to inaugurate the programmeIJ What role has she played in the growth of KudumbashreeIJ Why she alone is invited to the meet when the first person to be invited from outside the Government to such meetings is the State Assembly’s Opposition leaderIJ” asked CPI(M) central committee member TM Thomas Isaac.
It is equally strange that the organisers, the local Self-Government Department of the Kerala Government headed by Muslim league’s Minister MK Muneer, have not bothered to invite even a single Minister from the Union Government to the meet despite the fact that the Centre has been allotting crores of rupees for Kudumbashree projects every year. “Sonia Gandhi is just the president of a party. She does not hold any official position. She is not even the Opposition leader. This is proof of a deliberate Congress move to keep Union Ministers away from State Government programmes. It is a mean practice which not even the Marxists would like to follow,” said State BJP president V Muraleedharan.
The annual meeting will be inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi on August 12 at the Putharikkandam Grounds in the State capital. Governor Sheila Dikshit will inaugurate the valedictory programme on August 14. Chief Minister Oommen Chandy will make a declaration on the new initiatives which Kudumbashree is planning to undertake.
This is not the first time the Congress-led Government has sparked off a controversy by inviting Sonia to a programme. It had made her inaugurate the Government’s Zero landless programme of giving three cents land each to the landless on September 30 last. When criticisms arose, the Government said Sonia did it in her capacityas National Advisory Council’s head.
Isaac, Finance Minister in the former lDF Government, warned the Congress and the UDF Government against any effort to ‘hijack’ the Kudumbashree.
“If it is planning to change the project’s by-laws during the meet we will launch strong agitation. It will be in their interest to avoid a direct confrontation,” Isaac said. Immediately after assuming office, the Congress-led Government had faced allegations that it was trying to stifle Kudumbashree, which at that time was said to be controlled by the CPI(M), Giving credence to the charge, the Congress had then launched Janasree, a micro-credit organisation.
Meanwhile, Kudumbashree, one of the biggest projects of its kind in the country with about 4.1 million members and covering almost half the households of the State, is planning to start four community colleges for technical education.The first such college would be launched on August 14 at Thiruvananthapuram.It will also sign an agreement with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences for a post-graduate diploma programme in development. TISS will provide the required technical assistance for the new programme. The other three colleges will offer programmes in agriculture, pest control, dairy farming, automobile and construction technology and general administration.