KOLLAM: CPM’s state conference on Sunday unanimously re-elected M V Govindan as the party’s secretary of the Kerala unit. Unlike a decade ago, there was no factional dissent in the conference, with all members in the official panels getting elected unopposed.
Only those in the good books of CM Pinarayi Vijayan, the de-facto leader of both the govt and the party in Kerala, figured in the panels.
Addressing a meeting at the end of the four-day state conference, Vijayan rejected as “far-fetched and unfounded” the criticism against the new pathways suggested by him towards a new Kerala. He said CPM decided to accept string-free private capital long ago. However, the party could pursue the same only now due to lack of a supporting mechanism to attract such large-scale investment in the past.
Justifying the proposals he made in the document, Navakeralathinte Puthuvazhikal (New Pathways to a Renewed Kerala), which the state conference adopted without much resistance, Vijayan said the nearly nine years of continuous LDF governance significantly improved the facilities and environment, pivoting on which Kerala can achieve new heights in the coming days. The measures suggested in the document include public-private participation for revival of loss-making PSUs, cess, and differential fees for govt services.
“BJP govt at Centre wants to block development activities in Kerala. But we are not ready to shelve development dreams,” the CM said.