The Prime Minister’s Office has refused to give an appointment to an all-party delegation of MPs from Kerala who wanted to discuss flood relief work, especially the amendment of rules to allow foreign aid from countries such as the United Arab Emirates.
“I got a call from the Prime Minister’s Office on Monday, saying that the PM is too preoccupied and does not have time to meet us and we should instead meet Home Minister Rajnath Singh,” Congress MP from Alappuzha, K.C. Venugopal, told The Hindu .
The MPs had met with Mr. Singh on August 30. They have also met other senior Ministers, including Food Minister Ramvilas Paswan, Health Minister J.P. Nadda and Agriculture Minister Radhamohan Singh.
The delegation had two main demands, one that rules for receiving foreign aid to help Kerala and second to increase the Centre’s aid for the State. The delegation was promised that a detailed meeting will be held of all stakeholders, including Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, and will be chaired by Mr. Singh.
“Such a callous attitude is appalling. It simply shows that he is completely indifferent to the fate of lakhs of people who are still trying to put their life back on track after the unprecedented floods in the State,” Mr. Venugopal said.
