The Assembly on Wednesday witnessed a heated exchange followed by a walkout by the Opposition United Democratic Front over the Left Democratic Front government’s charge that UDF MPs were ineffectual in safeguarding the State’s interests in Parliament.
The matter came up in the Assembly after the day’s scheduled business was suspended for two hours to discuss an adjournment motion concerning the State’s financial situation. Both fronts locked horns over an LDF charge that UDF MPs were not supportive of its efforts to claim the State’s rightful share of funds from the Centre.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan attributed this ‘reluctance’ to the Congress-led UDF’s “fear” of opposing the BJP-led Central government. The stand was also politically motivated as the Congress did not wish to annoy the BJP in Kerala, Mr. Vijayan alleged.
Finance Minister K. N. Balagopal accused the UDF MPs of betraying the people of Kerala. The MPs stood ‘exposed’ before the people, he said.
Leader of the Opposition V. D. Satheesan strongly refuted the charges. He blamed the LDF government’s ‘inept’ fiscal management strategies for the dire financial situation that the State now found itself in.
Mr. Balagopal was blaming the UDF MPs to mask his own inefficiency. The UDF would publish a list of the State-related issues that its MPs had raised in Parliament, Mr. Satheesan said.
Soon after, the UDF staged a walkout blaming the government for “insulting” its 18 elected Lok Sabha MPs.
On a number of occasions in recent weeks, Mr. Balagopal had blamed UDF MPs of refusing to sign a joint memorandum containing the State’s demands to the Centre or become part of a delegation in this regard after agreeing to cooperate at an MPs conference convened by Mr. Vijayan.
On Wednesday, the UDF countered that its MPs were not approached through the proper channels. CPI(M)‘s Rajya Sabha MP Elamaram Kareem had approached the MPs seeking their signatures on the memorandum. Such a request should have come from the State Government, UDF members said.
The adjournment motion was moved by Roji M. John of the Congress.
Tax evasion
Mr. Satheesan blamed the State government’s dismal failure on the tax collection front for the financial crisis. Kerala has become “a haven of tax evasion. Goods are being transported without e-way bills, multiple goods are being transported using a single bill, and goods are being transported in excess of the volume shown in the bills,” he said, adding that the State’s tax administration is afflicted by a systemic failure.
The Finance department has also failed to claim the State’s rightful share of the Integrated Goods and Services Tax (IGST), he said. ‘‘The inefficiency of the tax administration system has deprived the State of ₹ 50,000 crore-₹ 75,000 crore in overall tax revenue in the past five years,” he said.
Mr. Balagopal termed the charges baseless, describing the Centre’s unsympathetic fiscal policies as the “real culprit” for the state’s financial problems.
