Pinarayi Vijayan. File photoAs Pinarayi Vijayan completes his first year as chief minister, it is clear that 2016-17 is one of the worst years in the political and economic history of Kerala. There is bad news on all fronts. There has been a spurt in political violence and crimes against women and children. Investments, economy, and job creation has seen a downturn.
In 2016, as people went to polls to throw out the corruption-ridden UDF government, the feeling was that any other government would be an improvement . But one year of Pinarayi Vijayan has proved that things could be worse, and it is.
In this first year, the report card of this government has been bad – the Supreme Court revoked the removal of an honest DGP and two ministers had to resign. There has been an unprecedented rise in political violence which culled 293 lives, including, for the first time, children and family members of political workers. There has been a rise in encroachment of forest land in Munnar; the plight of tribes and the landless continue to be pathetic; and there is little or no private investments or jobs. The opposition from the CPI, a constituent of the LDF and the CPM's main alliance partner, on critical issues has exposed the rift within.
The only positive in this report card full of failures is that Pinarayi has managed to keep the CPM behind him and stifle the murmurs of the opposition. The bad performance and the alarming situation found echo in the high court as it asked in April, "What’s happening in Kerala?"
It may be a fair argument that 12 months is too short a time to judge a government. But it is long enough time to understand the type of governance that a chief minister is capable of. So, its an understatement to say that these 12 months are disappointing and worrying. Four more years of such governance, characterized by violence and intimidation rather than governance and development, is a grim prospect.
There is a reason for this of course – the Marxists find themselves in a world where their ideas and ideologies are not relevant anymore. They have clung on to power in Kerala as the only alternative to the Congress. Even that distinction is blurred after both the Marxists and the Congress have aligned in West Bengal and at the Center. In a nutshell, the Congress and Marxists are trying to occupy the same political space – and there is no distinction between their economic and political ideologies. The only difference is that while the Congress relies on corruption , the Marxists rely on violence to further their plans. Stuck as Kerala is with Pinarayi Vijayan for the next four years – the expectations of Malayalees from this are clear"
1. End political violence
The CM is the home minister too. He must end political violence. Political violence negatively affects lives. Also, it impacts private and public investments. Investors do not want to invest and create jobs in a state that is being perceived as state sponsor of Political violence with no heed or respect for law or individual rights and liberty. Some 19 people, including four CPM workers disillusioned by the Marxist ideology, were brutally killed by the CPM goons, within 11 months of assuming power. Kannur alone witnessed 436 incidents of violence in this short span of time. CPM cadres also did not spare Mahija and K.K. Rema, former party workers, for standing up against Pinarayi. The former had lost her child and the latter, her husband. The government's reaction added insult to their injuries. The repeated promises made by the government to Mahija, on arresting the real culprits behind her son's death, remain unfulfilled.
Political violence may be Marxist ideology. But as the chief minister, Pinarayi Vijayan is he has taken duty-bound to uphold the law and ensure the safety of all citizens. The writing on the wall is clear. The end is nearing for the outdated, violent Marxist philosophy. I have been reiterating the point that the Marxist ideology, which enshrines violence, is on its last leg in Kerala and around the world. Wake up to that reality.
2. Stop the politicization of police
The police is becoming more of a political weapon than a public service organ. The shunting out of a DGP is testimony to this. Crimes against women actors and children are being reported from our state. This perception of a lawless anarchic state with a dysfunctional police is neither good nor acceptable. Take the initiative – and start getting the police to enforce the law.
The way in which T.P. Senkumar, a sincere officer, was humiliated, insulted and ill-treated for months together is a classic example of the CPM’s brazen politicization.
3. Take all steps to prevent radicalization and growth of ISIS
Recent reports and investigations point to Kerala becoming a hub for ISIS recruitment. This is certainly a very disturbing development. Even law-abiding Muslims feel threatened by the unfettered rise of radical Islam in our state. It is shocking to see that 21 out of the 70 youngsters recruited from India by the ISIS are from Kerala, making the State the largest 'provider of jihadis.' Recently, the NIA had arrested a group of IS men from Kannur, including their division in-charges who were in direct contact with the IS leadership in Syria and Afghanistan.
It is no surprise that the Kerala police had no clue of any of this. The politicization of the police makes the situation worse and more dangerous for our state. With the police reluctant to intervene in politically sensitive cases and with both the UDF and the LDF hopelessly incapable of taking on rogue elements within the minority communities, the situation is going to get worse.
4. Munnar Issue
Munnar in specific and the Western Ghats in general are sensitive areas and core to Kerala being the Gods own Country. This is not just an environment elitist issue but it impacts water, weather , health, and sanitation of thousands of people. This is a burning issue for all Malayalees and the CPM had even placed it as an item on its election manifesto. The party had said that all encroachments would be evicted. It had promised a white paper every six months.
One year in power has not changed anything in Munnar. The encroachments carried out by the political-business nexus remain untouched. The CM, ministers, MLAs, and MPs, are uniting to intimidate duty-bound officials.
5. Economy, employment
According to the annual Employment-Unemployment Survey 2017 of the Ministry of Labour, Kerala is the state with the highest rate of unemployment, at 12.5%. The national average is 5%. To any responsible leader, this should ring alarm bells.
I have met global investors who even refuse to consider Kerala as a destination because of the political violence and crimes that hit the headlines everyday. Only investments will create jobs. It is not enough for the chief minster to wake up occasionally and say 'we welcome investments.' Inbound investment is no longer about having a one-off event for inviting it. The CM is still caught in the 90s when one such event was enough to bring funds.
Formation of the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board, a so-called SPV, shows lack of vision and imagination on financial issues in the changing era.
The KIIFB targets Rs. 50,000 crore as investment in five years. But, the specifics are missing and no funds have been allocated in the State budget and there is no clarity on sourcing of funds or returns to investors.
A year has gone by after the finance minister announced KIIFB and not a single investor has turned up.
And as an eyewash, government is now planning to divert finances from other government agencies into KIIFB to show the people that it has not failed. With many other government agencies like KSIDC, InKEL, KINFRA, KSIE, KFC, SIDECO etc already operating on similar lines, KIIFB is going to be another white elephant.
Debt alone is not the answer without private investments. Such a debt-centric approach will only saddle future generations with more debt on the 80 lakh households. The government is consistently failing to use Central allocations for schemes. While they continue to blame the central government, the fact is that the state government refuses to submit outcome and audit reports required by states before finances are released for schemes.
The state’s economy is already perilous. The contraction of the middle-east economy will pose a severe challenge to Kerala.
6. Education
If educational reforms could be a yardstick for the quality of any government and its vision for future generations, the present Kerala government could again be the worst. At a time when the whole nation is turning towards skill-oriented education systems, the Kerala education department, ministered by a former college teacher, has made no efforts in this regard. Instead, they are delicately attempting to protect private managements of outdated self-financing engineering colleges.
None of the university examinations are now conducted in time. The Kerala Technological University, which came into being to sort-out the catastrophe in engineering education is stuck with no clarity on issues of affiliation, command over institutions, conduct of exams and the like.
There are reports that the fall in the quality of engineering education has resulted in top recruiters skipping self-financing colleges in Kerala for campus placements by 40% this year.
Only the Kerala University was ranked 47the in the top fifty universities in the National Institutional Ranking Framework 2017. This tells us where Kerala is in terms of standard of education.
7. Chaotic PDS
The public distribution system (PDS) in Kerala is crumbling. The two state-run agencies, SUPPLYCO and CONSUMERFED, are supposed to take control of the market when there is price rise and unmanageable food inflation. But, both the agencies are known for widespread corruption and financial irregularities. As a result, the market price of rice, pulses, and other essential commodities are skyrocketing. The government is yet to address issues associated with the supply of essential items through ration shops. Farmers are not getting the promised fair price for their paddy.
Some 16 lakh complaints regarding wrong entries and other anomalies in the new list of ration beneficiaries have not been rectified. An estimated 6 lakh 'non-entitled' entries had been detected in the BPL list. Such rampant pilferage would deprive the poor and the needy of what they deserve.
8. Centre bashing
A common practice with both the LDF and the UDF has been to complain against the central government for its ‘step-motherly attitude.' The prime minister and this government has been most committed to the needs of Kerala. Apart from nominating two MPs from the state, it is clear from the various central program allocations that the PM is very keen to ensure Kerala joins the mainstream.
The Pinarayi Vijayan government, when it complains, is being miserly with the truth. He fails to disclose every time that the state does not comply with the conditions of audit and outcome, linked to central schemes. That is why, in many cases, only hte first tranche of funds gets released.
In recent weeks, the CM has trained his guns on me, hoping perhaps to intimidate. That is of course not going to happen. Many have tried during my 11 years in politics and all have failed. There is a recent pathetic effort to try and arrest me. I dare Pinarayi Vijayan to do that. Come, arrest me. I neither get scared nor do I stray from my path due to threats and intimidation. My politics and public work are based on clear principles and the objectives of development and equity.
Our state and our people deserve better than what we have seen in the past year. The state and its people cannot afford another 4 years of the same. I may have my political differences with the CM and his government , but I am convinced that we must all work together to revive our state. Our politics should transform for the State’s full potential to be unleashed. I hope the CM changes from the politics of confrontation to one of constructive rebuilding of our state’s economy and governance.
(The author is an MP and vice-chairman, NDA, Kerala)
