UDF black day on LDF birthday

Thiruvananthapuram: The UDF observed the LDF government's second anniversary on Friday as betrayal day by launching a series of protests.  The Opposition leaders stayed away from the state- level inauguration of the anniversary celebrations in Kannur. The UDF released a chargesheet against the government in all the assembly constituencies. Opposition Leader Ramesh Chennithala inaugurated the state-level protests at Gandhi Park here at 5 p.m. Earlier,  Mr Chennithala's book titled    'Ellam Thakartherinja  Randu Varsham' (Two years that destroyed everything)  on the two years of LDF rule was released  by former chief minister Oommen Chandy by handing over a copy to Muslim League national general secretary P K Kunhalikutty MP at Cantonment House.

Mr Chandy, who spoke, said the LDF government had dropped several welfare programmes of the previous UDF government,  including the free cochlear implant programme for children. "It was time for the beneficiaries in the first phase to upgrade their implants. However, the government was not helping them," he said. Mr Chandy termed the LDF government as a total failure on the development front and said that the government which did not start any major development programme had failed even to continue the ones started by the previous government. Vizhinjam port work had come to a standstill due to the shortage of granite, Mr Chandy alleged.

The chargesheet alleged that law and order in the state had collapsed. It listed 25 political murders and eight custodial deaths in two years. There were also five reshuffles of district police heads. It charged Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan with   dictatorial style of functioning and said there was lack of coordination in governance.  The government did not keep the momentum of the projects initiated by the previous Chandy government like the Vizhinjam port and Kannur airport.  The government had chased away 'Metroman' E. Sreedharan affecting light metro projects in Kozhikode and Thiruvananthapuram, it said.