67-year old Kummanam Rajasekharan, former Governor of Mizoram, has alleged that people are denied fundamental and civic rights in Kerala by the Marxist Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
“Under the Marxist rule, the police is using violence to suppress agitations for justice and democracy. What we see in Kerala is the worst kind of Stalinism as the chief minister has turned himself into a dictator. There is all round corruption and nepotism in everything associated with the Kerala Government,” said Rajaselkharan while inaugurating the day-night agitation by BJYM, the BJP’s youth wing at Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday.
Rajasekharan said that Kerala has not seen the kind of police brutality being unleashed by the Government on activists agitating for restoration of fundamental rights. “Pinarayi Vijayan is exploiting religious sentiments of the people by alleging that the agitations were for banning Quran. We are not against Quran or any holy books. But we are against misusing religious sentiments to divert the attention from real issues like gold smuggling,” he said. PNS
The former Governor said that the suppression of agitations was because of the failure of the Chief Minister to accept the truth that smuggling has taken place. “The minister who is in the eye of a controversy Jaleel himself has said that smuggling might have taken place. But Vijayan wants to protect his minister. This is surprising,” he said. PNS
Benny Behanan, MP, convenor of the Congress-led UDF wrote a letter to Sitaram Yechuri, secretary of the CPI(M), on Wednesday asking the national leadership of the party to immediately remove Vijayan from the post of Chief Minister.
“The CPI(M) has always taken a moral stance on corruption issues. Hence the party should take a decision compatible with that stance,” Behanan reportedly told Yechury.
Ramesh Chennithala, Leader of the Opposition, said all corruption charges connected with the LIFE Mission Scheme should be investigated by the CBI. “This issue has ramifications of global level and only a probe by the CBI would bring the truth out,” said Chennithala while speaking to reporters.
Elsewhere in Kerala, demonstrations and rallies by the BJP, Congress and the Muslim League demanding Vijayan’s resignation continued with vigour despite police action.