Thiruvananthapuram, Jan 20 (IANS) Leader of Opposition (LoP) V.D. Satheesan on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on the Pinarayi Vijayan government’s policy address, calling it a document “stuffed with false claims and half-truths” that exposed the administration’s failure and deep financial distress.
Speaking after Governor Rajendra V. Arlekar concluded the 112-minute address, LoP Satheesan said the policy statement amounted to an admission of fiscal collapse.
He pointed out that the Kerala government, which had repeatedly claimed it was due to receive Rs 53,000 crore from the Centre, made no mention of this figure in the address, nor did it appear in submissions made before the Supreme Court.
“Different numbers are now being cited for political convenience,” he alleged. Satheesan also took exception to the government’s claim of upholding secular and democratic values.
He recalled controversial communal remarks made by State Minister of Fisheries Saji Cherian, saying the government’s moral posturing rang hollow while retaining such a minister in the Cabinet.
Calling the declaration that Kerala had eliminated extreme poverty a “cruel injustice to the poor,” the Opposition leader said media reports following the announcement had highlighted the plight of people without food or shelter.
He noted that nearly six lakh families remained on the list of the extremely poor even as the government claimed success by extending limited assistance to a small section.
On healthcare, Satheesan said the sector was “on a ventilator,” citing rising incidence of infectious diseases, including amoebic meningoencephalitis, jaundice and chickenpox.
He said 1.2 lakh people had sought treatment for fever in 2026 alone and flagged Rs 1,200 crore in arrears under the Karunya health scheme launched during the Oommen Chandy government.
He dismissed claims of excellence in higher education, pointing to vacant Vice-Chancellor and Principal posts, a collapsed four-year course structure and large-scale student migration.
He said university functioning had deteriorated sharply.
Satheesan alleged that welfare claims for Scheduled Castes and Tribes were misleading, noting stagnation in the plan fund for the first time in the State’s history, cuts of Rs 500 crore from the SC fund and Rs 112 crore from the ST fund, and delays in e-grants forcing students to drop out.
Law and order, he said, had worsened with rising crimes, drug mafia activity and unchecked criminal networks.
He also highlighted increasing wildlife attacks, agrarian distress, unfulfilled promises on rubber prices, stalled regional packages for coastal areas, Idukki and Wayanad, and delayed pension hikes.
On the Governor controversy, Satheesan said the Constitution required the Governor to read the Cabinet-approved address, but maintained that the address itself lacked credibility.
He alleged that confrontations between the government and the Governor surfaced only during crises and were later quietly settled, eroding public trust.
–IANS
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