By moving a no-confidence motion on Monday, it is clearly not the UDF's intention to push down the rock solid wall called the LDF government in Kerala. With only 45 members, the UDF cannot.
The only purpose of the exercise, therefore, is to deface the wall, to make it look ugly. As for the LDF, their job on August 24 is to scrub clean the crowded graffiti of allegations painted on the wall of its existence.
UDF's old wine charges
Though the UDF has a lot to talk about, their charges have by now become familiar: Gold smuggling and its connection to the Chief Minister's Office, the commission pocketed by dubious characters from a LIFE project contract, the government's fascination for consultancies, minister K T Jaleel's links to the UAE Consulate, and the seeking of legal assistance from a firm with familial links to Adani in the Thiruvananthapuram airport issue.
Not just the allegations, even the UDF arguments supporting these charges are as familiar as movie dialogues. Top leaders of the UDF have repeatedly and effectively articulated their side of the story through the media. And on Monday, it is possible that whatever they say would have already been heard.
LDF readying for the knockout punch?
But the government side could spring some surprises. The side has all along been cautious about revealing its mind. Till now, no voice of authority in the government or the LDF parties has come forward to forcefully challenge the allegations. It were the younger lot, mostly SFI and DYFI leaders, who were despatched to television channels to shield the government. And they relied more on their six-pack word power than any substantial official evidence to silence their opponents.
The opposition sees this as a sign that the LDF is struggling for answers but top LDF sources said the Front has a far better strategy than merely calling M Sivasankar a “traitor” or dismissing the charges as “opposition and media conspiracy”. But this is still a secret, which top CPM sources said would be revealed in the floor of the House.
Pinarayi in hibernation
Till about a fortnight ago, it was usual for Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to take on any allegations during his daily COVID briefing. There were occasions when he did it with great aplomb, like when he tore into KPCC president Mullappally Ramachandran for criticising health minister K K Shailaja.
There were also moments when he was vague and unconvincing, like in the case of Sprinklr or when he was asked about the inclusion of two Dutch firms in the list of consultancies for Rebuild Kerala or when he was told about the money a gold smuggling accused had swindled from the LIFE Mission.
Even then, on the whole, Vijayan had given the impression that would not flinch from difficult questions.
But a fortnight ago, the Chief Minister went on a self-imposed isolation after top officials, including the district collector he had interacted with during his visit to Kozhikode to meet the Karipur plane crash victims, were declared COVID positive. He stopped his daily briefing, cutting himself off from the media.
Revelations during hibernation
In this time, new evidence emerged that seemed to contradict the Chief Minister's stand on the LIFE Mission controversy. Vijayan had said the government had just provided the land and was fully in the dark about the deals Emirates Red Crescent had struck to construct 140 flats in Wadakkanchery, Thrissur.
The charge was that Unitac, the builder picked by Red Crescent to construct LIFE flats in Wadakkancherry, had bribed the gold smuggling accused, Swapna Suresh. The Chief Minister's stand was that his government could not be held accountable for something it had no control over.
Now, there is evidence to show that Unitac had government backing.
Isaac and Jaleel in a spot
The channel backed by the CPM has also confirmed that kickbacks were indeed paid by Unitac; not Rs 1 lakh as earlier assumed but Rs 4.25 lakh. The channel even revealed the date, time and place of the illegal transaction. Finance minister T M Thomas Isaac, who was present when the revelation was made, said he was aware of such a deal.
Fingers were quickly pointed at Isaac. Why did he not inform the Chief Minister if he knew? The party channel's expose looked potentially damaging for the government as it was revealed that a few days after the builder had offered the bribe the LIFE Mission CEO had sent an official letter to Emirates Red Crescent recommending Unitac.
Top CPM sources said “clear answers” to these doubts would be provided inside the Assembly.
It is not just Isaac who will have to do some explaining. Higher education minister K T Jaleel's links with the UAE Consulate has become more problematic than when the Chief Minister was asked about it more than a fortnight ago. Jaleel has to account for the Quran packages that the state protocol officer had said was not given any exemption clearance. There are reports that the Centre would soon launch a probe into Jaleel's violation of protocol in his dealings with the UAE consulate.
Sources said the Chief Minister had asked Jaleel to dismiss the charges against him with official evidence.
UDF to resurrect forgotten charges
On the other hand, the UDF is not worried that their charges lack novelty value. “There are so many charges that some grave ones may have been forgotten by the public. We want to revive them, keep them fresh in the public's mind,” a top UDF leader said.
One is the government's, as a Congress leader put it, “consultancy mania”. Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala will once again emphasise his oft-repeated charge that about 80 per cent of all awarded consultancies had benefited a “particular London-based consulting company that is alleged to have links with the highest corridors of power”.
Unemployment would be the other emotional issue that the UDF wants to whip the government with. The UDF will argue on Monday that the LDF had employed private placement agencies to sneak in preferred candidates through the backdoor, undermining the Public Service Commission in the process.