Congress leader Venugopal's remark on social welfare pensions ahead of Nilambur bypoll draws flak from LDF
The Left Democratic Front (LDF) campaign in the Nilambur Assembly by-election sought to put the United Democratic Front (UDF) in the dock by accusing the opposition alliance of denigrating the distribution of social welfare pensions as 'ballot-eve by-offs'.
The Communist Party of India (Marxist) [CPI(M)] State secretariat member and LDF's candidate in Nilambur, M. Swaraj, alleged that All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary, (Organisation), K.C. Venugopal, MP, had demeaned 62 lakh social welfare pension recipients in the State by insinuating that their political allegiances were bargainable.
Mr. Swaraj noted that the payees were predominantly senior citizens, widows, unmarried women over 50, agricultural labourers, and persons with disabilities. The LDF was sworn to increase the monthly welfare payment from ₹1,600 to ₹2,500.
Mr. Swaraj said the State's welfare pension was their right, not charity or an inducement to garner votes. 'Mr Venugopal should apologise or amend his statement if he did not mean it. If not, Mr. Venugopal runs the risk of appearing to shame those at the lowest socio-economic rung of Kerala's society', he added.
General Education Minister V. Sivankutty said Mr. Venugopal's speech at the election convention of Congress's candidate, Aryadan Shoukath, in Nilambur, was tantamount to a direct challenge to ordinary citizens.
'Mr. Venugopal has sneered at ordinary people who depend on the pension as a financial support. Congress leaders should stop ridiculing common folk at the hustings. Fear of failure has provoked Mr Venugopal to disparage the people', he wrote on Facebook.
Mr. Venugopal accused the LDF of distorting his speech. 'I had not belittled social welfare pension beneficiaries. Instead, I pointed out that the LDF withheld the monthly pension payments and released the funds only when it was electorally expedient for the ruling front. It has been the government's repeated go-to-campaign ruse', he told reporters in New Delhi.
Venugopal refuses to retract statement
Mr. Venugopal refused to retract the controversial statement. 'The LDF used the gambit in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections to no avail', he said.
Leader of the Opposition V.D. Satheesan and senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala expressed solidarity with Mr. Venugopal. Both stated that the LDF government had undermined the sanctity of welfare payments by brazenly exploiting them as a political tool at the expense of the beneficiaries.
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