Chengannur bypoll to evaluate government: Oommen Chandy

Kottayam: The result of the by-election at Chengannur assembly constituency will be an evaluation of the government and the Opposition, said senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy. "Every by-election will evaluate their politics," he told reporters in Kottayam on Saturday. He described finance minister TM Thomas Isaac's promise to cut oil taxes after the by-election as an election stunt. He criticised CPM state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishnan portraying the Ayyappa Seva Sangham as a communal organisation. 

"The LDF will pay a heavy price for his statement," he said. In a statement, he also criticised the LDF government for "appropriating" his achievements. The government had listed 72 achievements in various sectors, he said, but the fact is that they cannot take credit for even a number countable on the fingers". He asked the government to give details of 1.4 million built-up space claimed to have created for the software industry in two years, and 65 new firms started functioning there.