Stephan Kayyar
Daijiworld Media Network - Kasargod (SP)
Kasargod, Nov 2: Former union minister and Kerala chief minister, A K Antony, who termed measures undertaken by the NDA government at the centre like demonetisation and GST as disastrous, blamed them as being responsible for driving people to streets. He also claimed that both these measures have reached a state where finding a solution to problems arising out of them is impossible to address.
He was speaking after flagging off the 'Padayorukkam' Yuddha Sannaddha Yatra' by foot being undertaken by the state opposition leader, Ramesh Chennithala, at a function held at Uppala on Wednesday November 1 evening. "We cannot expect anything from the central government which gifted the people on the occasion of Rajyotsava by way of hiking LPG price. People who voted for BJP are now repenting their move. They are now expectantly waiting for 2019 Lok Sabha election to bring Congress back to power at the centre," he stated.
Antony said that because of the above two measures, all the sectors have suffered downslide and even people who were preparing pickles and selling it have got trapped in GST quagmire. "If we rise to power, we will address all the confusions relating to GST," he said. He also blamed the central government for hiking fuel prices although price of crude oil in international market is experiencing a decline.
He felt that the state Left Democratic Front government has entered into secret deal with BJP whereby it will try to bring BJP back to power by opposing Congress. He accused CPM of foiling efforts being made to forge a unity among the opposition at the centre against BJP. "For CPM, the arch rival now happens to be Congress, not BJP," he felt.
Kerala Pradesh Congress Commmittee president, M M Hassan, presided over the function. All India Congress Committee secretary, Mukul Wasnik, Karnataka minister, U T Khader, former chief minister,Oommen Chandy, MP, P K Kunhali Kutty, Karnataka MLAs, Vinay Kumar Sorake and Mohiuddin Bava, UDF convener, P P Tanchachan, former minister, Cherkalam Ahdulla, Tiruvanjoor Radhakrishnan, Shibu Baby John, Devadasan, Johny Ballur, N A Nellikunnu, K C Venugopal, P B Abdul Razack, Shani Mol Usman and others were present.
The Yatra received tremendous reception on its arrival in the town. It will move through Chattanchal, Kanhagad and Trikkaripura on Thursday where too it will get fitting welcome. On Thursday evening, it will enter Kannur district.
The Yatra, whih will move all along Kerala, will end at Thiruvananthapuram on December 1 where it will culminate.