Congress MLAs attack revenue minister Adoor Prakash

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: UDF’s ‘green’ MLAs, V D Satheeshan and T N Prathapan, have crossed swords with revenue minister Adoor Prakash over what they term as the “brazen manner” in which a game-changing land-related notification was issued.

While the MLAs say that it was done in a secretive manner, the minister argues that the MLAs had the chance to point out mistakes in the Assembly. Prathapan even alleged that even the Chief Minister was kept in the dark.

The minister said that the MLAs could have raised the issue on July 1, when demands for grants for the Revenue Department were taken up in the Assembly.

“This was not placed in frontof the cabinet nor was it tabled in the Assembly. What’s more, it was not placed before the party, before the coordination committee or even before the Congress Legislature party meeting,” Satheeshan said. “How can an MLA react if he is kept in the dark?,” he added. T N Prathapan, too, said MLAs were unaware of such a notification.

“I would have opposed such an amendment with the last drop of blood left in my body,” he said.

The Idukki DCC president, Roy K Poulose, too had questioned the rationale behind the notification.

“This will only help to deny title deeds for poor farmers who had settled in the high ranges before 1977,” he said. The revenue minister, however, said that the decision was taken on the basis of frequent requests for title deeds made by Mr Poulose.

Prathapan said that it was initially hard to believe that such a notification, which regularises encroachments carried out during 34 years, was even issued.

“Not in my wildest dreams have I thought that such an amendment with far-reaching consequences would be made without any discussion in the Assembly or in party and UDF meetings,” Prathapan said. Thousands of acres of land will be lost as a consequence, he said.