Thiruvananthapuram (Kerala) [India], January 11 : Union Home Minister Amit Shah slammed the ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF). He said that their alternative sequence of reign has "stagnated the state's politics", highlighting the BJP's vision for "a developed Kerala."
Addressing the gathering at the inauguration of the 'New India, New Kerala' conclave organised by Kerala Kaumudi, Shah accused the LDF and UDF governments of covering up each other's corruption, listing several unresolved scandals in the state.
"This alternating sequence of LDF and UDF governments here has fueled corruption. The UDF does not investigate corruption under the LDF rule, and vice versa. Ultimately, both are corrupt... Was the Rs 343 crore cooperative bank scam investigated? Were there conclusive investigations into the AI Camera scam, the LIFE Mission scam, or the PPE kit procurement scam? No. During the UDF's time, there was a bribery scandal involving 100 crore rupees. It wasn't investigated. The solar scam, or the bridge scam, wasn't investigated either. These two alliances protect each other's corruption," Shah questioned.
In that regard, Shah asserted that only the NDA government can free the state from corruption.
"We want to establish governance without corruption in Kerala. If the people of Kerala want to get rid of corruption, there is only one way out: to give the NDA government a chance," Shah stated.
Additionally, Shah accused the LDF and UDF of opposing the ban on the PFI rather than identifying and eliminating such threats to establish unity in the state.
"... When we banned the PFI, the UDF and LDF subtly opposed it or did not support it. Through this program, I want to ask the people of Kerala: Can organisations like PFI, Jamaat-e-Islami, and political parties like SDPI (Social Democratic Party of India) keep Kerala united? How can those who do not believe in peaceful coexistence keep Kerala united? It is the responsibility of the government to identify these threats and make efforts to eliminate them...," Amit Shah said.
Shah again questioned the Kerala government for failing to conduct a neutral investigation into the Sabrimala Temple gold theft case.
"When the question of faith arises in Sabarimala, and when the theft from the Lord's treasury in Sabarimala is being covered up, dozens of questions are raised against the government... When the public has doubts about your own ministers, how can you conduct a neutral investigation? And it's not just necessary for the investigation to be neutral, it must also appear neutral...," Shah said while reiterating the demand of the investigated to be done by a neutral agency.
Shah further lauded the BJP government's vision for Kerala of a politics that is "performance-based, commits to addressing every complaint, and focuses on development, not appeasement."
"We envision a politics that transcends politics and is performance-based. This is something that PM Modi has initiated in this country. A politics that believes in commitment rather than complaints. There will always be complaints, no matter how developed a country is. But there should be a commitment to address every complaint. It's a politics that believes in creating a society where development, not appeasement, is the focus. We want to move from silence to strength. We want to strengthen those who are suppressed so that they no longer have to remain silent. We want to move from doubt to decision, and from delay to delivery," Shah said.
"The recent local body elections in Kerala have completely changed the landscape. I appeal to the people of Kerala: Kerala needs a new ideology, new blood, and a new kind of politics, which only the BJP and the NDA can provide. Under PM Modi's leadership, we can very well envision a developed Kerala," Shah added.
Earlier, Amit Shah claimed that the NDA would win the upcoming Kerala elections. Reflecting on the BJP's landmark victory in Thiruvananthapuram, Shah affirmed that "any party that crosses the 20% threshold doesn't take 5 years to reach 40%."
"When I say that the next government in Kerala will be an NDA government, a BJP government, it's very natural for you to have doubts... I've been a student of electoral statistics since I was 15... In the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, the BJP got 11% of the vote in Kerala. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, the NDA got 16% of the vote in Kerala. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, we have reached 20%. There's a history in democratic politics across the country that any party that crosses the 20% threshold doesn't take 5 years to reach 40%; it jumps from 20 to 40," Shah noted.
"In these local body elections, we experimented by contesting every seat under the BJP and NDA symbols, and look at the results: for the first time, a BJP mayor is sitting in Thiruvananthapuram," he added.