Kottayam: Union minister and senior BJP leader M. Venkaiah Naidu on Wednesday came down heavily on the CPM for unleashing violence against the BJP activists in the state and said the party will make it a national issue. He also ridiculed the Congress and the CPM saying they were two sides of the same coin and were friends in Delhi and enemies in the state.
Addressing the concluding session of the BJP state council meeting here, Mr Naidu, Minister of Urban Development, Housing and Urban Poverty Alleviation and Information & Broadcasting, said the steps against black money holders would continue by controlling benami assets and illegal gold deposits.
“The CPM wants to eliminate the BJP workers in the state. In Palakkad, they have attacked women. The entire country is viewing this,” Mr Venkaiah said.
“Within seven months of the LDF rule, 18 murders had occurred. We will confront this through ideas and politics,” he said.
The party wanted to capture power in the state the next time, he said and reminded the audience that serious corruption scandals had hit the UPA government. The Opposition had spoiled the Lok Sabha proceedings for 70 days, he said. “The centre is being ruled by a government without corruption and scandals,” he added.
Presiding over the function, BJP state president Kummanam Rajasekaran said that the centre was taking steps for the release of Salesian priest Father Tom Uzhunnalil who was abducted by terrorists from Yemen.
“The special team constituted for the purpose will coordinate with the leaders of other countries for his release,” he said.
Mr Kummanam maintained that it was due to the efforts of the BJP government at the centre that the price of rubber had increased. BJP leaders P.K. Krishnadas, C.K. Padmanabhan and V. Muralidharan among others were present on the occasion.
