AICC general secretary Rahul Gandhi kicked off his poll campaign in Kerala on Saturday with a poser: Does the state want to have a 93-year-old chief minister?
“If the Left Democratic Front is elected to power, by the time of the next elections you will have a 93-year old chief minister,” Mr Gandhi said at the Rajendra Maidan here, obviously targeting ageing CM V.S. Achuthanandan. “Think of that,” he added.
Addressing a well-attended meeting, Mr Gandhi urged the electorate to choose the Congress-led Opposition instead, which has a blend of youth and experience.
Mr Gandhi, who had ensured the presence of at least a dozen names from his youth brigade in the candidates’ list, said a mix of “youth and experience” would also be given when the UDF formed the government in the state after the polls. He attacked the CPI(M)-led government in the state, saying its rule benefited only the party and not the state’s people, evoking cheers from the crowds. “It has been a reign of violence and fear where development took a backseat,” he said.
Despite the strides made by the state in human development indices like literacy and overall health, economic development was at a standstill, he said.
Industrial growth, IT, telecommunications and progress in agriculture was vital for the development of any state.
“This is where the Kerala government has failed,” he said, adding that the UDF would “push economic development very aggressively”.
The AICC general secretary embraced Hybi Eden, the youthful candidate of Ernakulam, and also introduced other candidates to the crowd. “How many jobs did the LDF create,” Mr Gandhi asked at an election meeting in Chalakkudy. “How much industrialisation has taken place in Kerala? Why do companies that create jobs go to Maharashtra, Haryana, New Delhi and Tamil Nadu, and not to Kerala?”
Addressing meetings in Pathanamthitta and Ambalapuzha later on Saturday, Mr Gandhi said the UDF would ensure jobs for the youth when it comes to power. “As of now, the only way to get a job in Kerala is to be a member of the CPI(M),” he said. “But we will put the state on the industrial map of the world.”
Despite the summer heat, Mr Gandhi’s election meetings in most centres drew good crowds.