Kerala Health Minister Veena George on Saturday said the state should not be denied an All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) over arguments about its location.

Veena said only a political decision by the Centre was pending on the much-awaited project. "That decision should be taken at the earliest," she said. However, she added that the project should not be withheld on account of such debates.

Both the present Union Health Minister J P Nadda and his predecessor Mansukh Mandaviya had responded positively to Kerala’s demand for the premier medical institute, she said. Mandaviya had even said the state "definitely deserved" an AIIMS, she recalled.

The minister added that setting up an AIIMS was a long-standing demand of the people of Kerala. Her remarks came days after Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi called for an AIIMS in Alappuzha district.

Several BJP leaders described his statement as a "personal view", saying the Centre would take the final call on the location. Earlier this week, Gopi said he had asked the Kerala Chief Minister to allocate land in Alappuzha. The ruling CPM criticised his remarks, terming them an attempt to create "unnecessary controversy" after the state had already proposed Kozhikode as the ideal site and earmarked land for it.

On Thursday, BJP state general secretary M T Ramesh said the party welcomed the setting up of an AIIMS anywhere in Kerala, adding that Gopi’s demand was his "personal opinion".