Kerala asked for high-speed train, got scheme for turtles in Union Budget: Pinarayi

Kasaragod: Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Sunday launched the LDF’s statewide election campaign, the Vikasana Munnetta Jatha, with a scathing attack on the BJP-led Union government, accusing it of deliberately sidelining Kerala in the Union Budget and subjecting the state to what he described as a financial boycott. He said the BJP is exacting its revenge on the state because Kerala rejects its politics of hate.

Speaking at Kumbla in the Manjeshwar Assembly constituency, Vijayan said the neglect of Kerala had become unmistakably clear with the presentation of the Union Budget on Sunday. “The speciality of today is the Union government’s neglect of our state. Without our saying, it became clear to all with the presentation of the Union budget,” he said.

The Chief Minister pointed out the irony between the Finance Ministry's own Economic Survey and the Budget that followed. The Economic Survey, tabled a day earlier by the same Finance Ministry, had extensively highlighted Kerala’s achievements and how the state stood apart from the rest of the country, he said. “In every sector, the union government was forced to list out Kerala’s achievements in the survey,” he said. “But there ended the thought for Kerala.”

In the Budget presented by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, none of Kerala’s key demands found a mention, he said. “But there was one mention of protecting sea turtles. Where do we have sea turtles and their habitats? There is nothing wrong with conserving sea turtles. That is what is mentioned in the budget,” Vijayan said, lacing his criticism with sarcasm.

Kerala, he said, had asked for infrastructure projects. “We asked for a semi-high-speed railway.” Taking a dig at BJP leader and 'Metroman' E Sreedharan, Vijayan said: “An honourable person, speaking as a spokesperson for the BJP government, announced to Kerala that a high-speed railway line has been sanctioned… All the people thought that something was going to come (in the budget).”

“But going by the budget presented today, it is clear that the Union government has not changed its attitude towards Kerala,” he said. Vijayan noted that neighbouring states had been considered in the Budget. “The Union government considered our neighbouring states. It is a good thing. States should be considered. We are not against it. Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh. High-speed rail has been announced for them in the budget. It is a good thing. But why is Kerala ineligible for a high-speed rail corridor?”

Answering his own question, the Chief Minister blamed the state’s Opposition. In the states where projects were sanctioned, he said, ruling and opposition parties together pressed for development. “But since 2021, our opposition has taken a position to oppose all projects in the state. The Congress and the Indian Union Muslim League vigorously opposed projects. They do not want any projects to come to Kerala when the LDF is in power,” he said.

This, Vijayan argued, paved the way for continued neglect by the Union government. “The opposition in our state would not oppose the Union government with their words or even a glance. That is the experience of our state.”

At the launch of the 2021 Assembly elections, Vijayan went to town raising the same charge of neglect against the Union government. The LDF went on to return to power with 99 seats in the 140-member Assembly.

He said the objective of the Vikasana Munnetta Jatha was to place before the people the challenges Kerala was facing, particularly the neglect from the Union government. “We were suffocating. Our state is not able to make progress. We were denied what we rightfully deserved. Even in natural calamities, a biased stance was taken.”

Kerala, he said, remains the only major state without an AIIMS, despite land being identified at Kinalur in Kozhikode. The Union Budget also offered no support to the Vizhinjam International Seaport, which Vijayan described as the biggest port in the country, though central assistance was crucial for certain segments of the project.

He also flagged the issue of tax devolution. “The tax devolution is less than what Kerala deserves,” he said. “We presented the numbers to the Union government and convinced them. But there is no change in its devolution,” he said. "It is like revenge. BJP’s revenge."

The BJP knows Kerala is not a society that accepts the BJP, he said. "While the BJP pushes politics of hate and hostility that weaken secularism across the country, Kerala is moving in the opposite direction," the Chief Minister said. “This is a land of peace and harmony. BJP is not able to tolerate that. BJP wants to destroy it.”

Going after IUML
The Chief Minister also targeted the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), accusing it of attempting to return to power by invoking religious sentiments. Referring to a speech by IUML leader and former MLA K M Shaji, Vijayan said: “I find it difficult to discuss these things openly. Yet, when such campaigns are held secretly, we have to counter them.”

Referring to the speech, he said: “The speech of a person who was an MLA before was widely discussed. He keeps saying religion, religion, religion. Even though (IUML is) a political party, they try to unleash religious sentiments.”

“Don’t think you can make a comeback by unleashing religious sentiments,” Vijayan said, asking what the party had delivered when it was in power, citing delays in school textbooks, shortcomings in health infrastructure, and failure to raise welfare pensions to ₹2,000.

The Vikasana Munnetta Jatha is being led by CPM State Secretary M V Govindan. The northern leg of the campaign will conclude in Palakkad on February 16. CPI State Secretary Binoy Viswam will lead the jatha through Thrissur, Alappuzha, Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram, while Kerala Congress (M) leader Jose K Mani will cover Pathanamthitta, Kottayam, Idukki and Ernakulam.