LDF Convener Vaikom Viswan- Janavidhi 2010- Kottayam Press Club

UDF co-opting extremist elements: Vaikom Viswan


Kottayam: Sept 21,Vaikom Viswan, Left Democratic Front convener, has alleged that the Opposition United Democratic Front (UDF) is trying to bring elements with extremist links under its umbrella to mop up support in the run up to the elections to the local bodies.

Participating in "Janavidhi 2010," an interaction organised by the Press Club here in connection with the elections, Mr. Viswan alleged that the Opposition front was mixing politics in the ruling front's efforts to bring real power to the people through decentralisation.

To a question, Mr. Viswan said the Communist Party of India (Marxist) had not taken any new decision on its approach to the People's Democratic Party (PDP). The party had come to the conclusion that no action which made people doubt its secular credentials should be initiated.

He said leaders of the PDP were facing some police cases and they had not made any political declarations. The CPI(M) had not discussed accepting the votes of the PDP and would do so when the need arose.

On statements form civil society organisations such as the Church, the Sree Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam and the Nair Service Society, Mr. Viswan said while some of them reflected an eagerness for the public good, some others went against secular and democratic values.

"This is not a good symptom. Some of them were trying to undermine democracy and secularism with the sole aim of undermining the Communist party," he said.

Taking a dig at Leader the Opposition Oommen Chandy for criticising the State government's performance on the Panchayati Raj front, Mr. Viswan said the solid support and compliments received by the State government from the United Progressive Alliance government on its efforts for decentralised governance were the answer to such allegations.

"The Central government had declared that the State was a model for the entire nation in this regard," he said.

He said educational institutions under the local bodies had not only developed infrastructure but also enhanced quality of teaching. "This was reflected in the SSLC results," he said.

In the field of health, the State was facing new challenges, especially in waste management. While the local bodies were not able to take on the new challenges effectively, new beginnings were emerging in the urban local bodies in Kochi, Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram and Kozhikode.

He said the situation prevailing in the State was different from what existed during the Lok Sabha elections in 2009 and the LDF hoped to win a good majority in the local body elections. Press Club Joint Secretary Robin Thomas made welcome speech and Tresurer S. Sanilkumar Proposed Vote of thanks

Videoby: Binu Mohan

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• LDF convener Vaikom Viswan