Kerala now free of extreme poverty: CM Vijayan in Assembly

Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday announced in the Assembly that the state is now free of extreme poverty.

The declaration was made during a special session of the House convened to mark Kerala Piravi, the state’s formation day. However, the announcement drew sharp criticism from the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) opposition, which termed the government’s claim a “pure fraud” and boycotted the session in protest.

As the special Assembly session began, Leader of the Opposition V D Satheesan said the Chief Minister’s statement under Rule 300 was a “pure fraud” and in “contempt” of the House rules.

“So, we cannot take part in this and are completely boycotting the session,” Satheesan said, before leading the opposition members out of the House. The UDF legislators shouted slogans denouncing the government’s claim as “fraudulent” and “shameful.”

Responding to the allegations, Chief Minister Vijayan said the opposition was only describing its own conduct when it used the word “fraud.”

“We only say what we can implement. We have implemented what we said. That is our reply to the opposition leader,” Vijayan stated.

With PTI inputs