No doubt, the PM’s meetings were well attended. Managing a good crowd is not a problem for the BJP with its money and muscle power. But the people’s response was anything but enthusiastic. That must cause concern to the saffron camp, which is pulling out all the stops to open its Lok Sabha account from the State.

But the way the PM went about that extremely difficult task was anything but productive. He came, addressed a few meetings, delivered his spiel riddled with patent falsehoods. A distinctive feature of his speeches was the personal attack on Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and his family. The Chief Minister and his daughter are facing allegations of corruption, Modi thundered. The PM also referred to the so-called Karuvannur bank scam. He was long on rhetoric but short on facts.

The fact is that the investigating agencies have not been able to unearth even a shred of evidence against the Pinarayi Government. The misuse of the Enforcement Directorate to open a new front against the LDF Government and the CM is set to backfire. The more the Union Government tries to frame false charges against the LDF Government and the Chief Minister, the greater the support to the latter.

In a quick and sharp response to the Prime Minister’s allegations, the Kerala Chief Minister challenged the PM to name at least one BJP-ruled state government which is doing better than Kerala. A supremely confident CM said Kerala’s social development index matches that of the western countries. Kerala, the CM added, stood first in a sustainable development survey made, not by the CPI(M) or Kerala Government, but by the NITI Aayog. Besides, the State is all set to achieve its goal of eliminating extreme poverty by November 2025.

Also, Kerala is performing better than other states in the education and health sectors. Pinarayi also denounced the Union Government’s attempts to destroy financial federalism. He also lashed out at the anti-Left media which is portraying the SC directive to consider Kerala’s request through a five-member division bench as a setback to the State. The boot, Pinarayi said, is on the other leg. It is actually a big victory for the state. The apex court’s order shows that it finds Kerala’s complaint against the Union Government valid.

The Chief Minister also criticized the freezing of the CPI(M) district committee’s account in Thrissur. The CPI(M) does not have any secret accounts as alleged by the BJP and the Congress. In fact, CPI(M) is the only party which has earned praise from the Income Tax Department for proper filing of tax returns. Such cheap tactics would not ensure the victory of Malayalam cinema’s superstar Suresh Gopi from Thrissur, the CM said. Pinarayi also claimed that there is an LDF wave across the State, which would reflect in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections.

The poll campaign by the Opposition parties in the State has touched a new low. Sensing their impending debacle in the elections, both the Congress and the BJP have unleashed a vituperative campaign against the Left candidates. A principle victim of this vulgar campaign is former Kerala health minister K. K. Shailaja, who is contesting from Vadakara Lok Sabha constituency. Shailaja has accused her Congress rival Shafi Parambil of unleashing a slanderous campaign against her on the social media. She has also lodged a formal complaint to the district Electoral Officer. The Congress is living in fool’s paradise if it thinks that such abusive campaigns will benefit it. If anything, it will only backfire; and, indeed, it already has as is evident from the wave of anger the Congress campaign has touched off.

In another significant development, more and more pre-poll surveys are coming out, predicting an impressive performance by the LDF this time around. One such survey has gone to the extent of forecasting that the LDF would win at least 14 seats. The basis of their prediction is the distinct failure and marked reluctance of the Opposition Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) to take a firm stand against the communal campaign undertaken by the BJP-RSS combine.

The failure of the Congress to mention the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in its manifesto has done considerable damage to its credibility. The anger of the Muslim minority in the State against the Congress is visible from the failure of top Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leaders like P K Kunhalikutty to attend Rahul Gandhi’s latest roadshow. The IUML is also unhappy over the Congress directive not to display the IUML’s green flag at Rahul’s roadshows! This being the backdrop, there is a distinct possibility of more and more Muslims voting for the LDF, which has taken a firm stand against the CAA and the communal campaigning of the Hindutva forces in Kerala. (IPA Service)