Wondering if the Left Democratic Front (LDF) will reopen liquor bars, which have not been closed by the United Democratic Front (UDF) government, is like asking “whether you have stopped beating your wife”, CPI (M) general secretary Sitaram Yechury said, even as he termed it a tricky question.
At a meet-the-press programme here on Saturday, he said the UDF’s liquor policy had failed to bring down liquor consumption. “Alcohol consumption and the revenue from it have only spiked. The State, heralded as a global model for innovative development initiatives, is now witnessing a phenomenon of mushrooming five-star hotels, after liquor permits were restricted to this category,” he said.
The CPI(M), he said, was committed to sharply reducing alcohol consumption, and that the ways to attain it would be discussed if the LDF came to power. “The CPI(M) in the State is working to replace the ‘corrupt’ UDF government, even as it fights the BJP, a formidable enemy nationally,” he added.
Mr. Yechury alleged that there was “some sort of match-fixing” between the UDF and the BJP in Kerala, but the phenomenon had been going on for some time.
“When the Paravur temple tragedy happened, I was in Chennai. But I chose not to visit the site the next day, as it would have upset the relief operations. That was the priority, as VIP visits are distracting on such occasions. Prime Minister Narendra Modi, however, did not have the same wisdom. It later turned out that the administration was against the PM’s visit, but the Kerala Chief Minister hailed it and appreciated Mr. Modi,” he said, adding that the Congress and the BJP had entered into a kind of match-fixing in some constituencies, as they had done in the past. “After all, [cricketer] Sreesanth is their candidate,” he said.
On the Left Front’s truck with the Congress in West Bengal, he said the State had witnessed an extraordinary situation created by the politics of terror, intimidation, and violence by the Trinamool Congress.
“There was an urgent need to restore civilian rule, and joining the Left Front in this cause was the Congress, JD(U), NCP, JD (S), and several social and political movements. This was a ground-level development. We never formed a formal alliance,” he said.
On the CPI(M) coming under fire for alleged political violence, especially in Kannur, he said accusations were raised against party leaders by their political rivals out of sheer frustration. “Let the law take its course. We are very clear that the activities of our cadre are in line with our principles and the laws of the land,” Mr. Yechury said.
Expressing confidence that the LDF would wrest power, he said the State needed effective governance to bring about people-oriented development and to curtail the menace of communalism.
Mr. Yechury also denied any friction in the party’s top brass in Kerala, saying: “It was once the staple diet of journalists from Kerala.”
UDF’s policy has failed to bring down liquor consumption
Sitaram Yechury
CPI(M) general secretary
