31 August : In an apparent dig at the CPI(M), senior Congress leader and Defence Minister A K Antony has said some parties are trying to project themselves as champions of the poor with an eye on the vote bank.
The uplift of the underprivileged classes like the Scheduled Castes has been an area of high priority for the Congress at all times, he said."Now several other outfits have appeared on the scene claiming themselves to be the champions of the poor," Antony said, without naming any party while inaugurating the state-level celebrations of the birth centenary of Babu Jagjivan Ram in Thiruvananthapuram on Sunday.
The CPI(M) had organised a Dalit convention at Kochi recently.Kerala getting more central assistance under UPA govt: Antony
Refuting ruling LDF’s charge that the UPA government was ignoring Kerala, Defence Minister A K Antony has said the state received more central assistance under the Manmohan Singh government.
The Centre was continuing to assist the state in various development projects though the Left had withdrawn its support to the UPA government.In spite of this, the LDF government was accusing the Centre of neglecting the state, he said after inaugurating a local Congress committee office in Kochi on Sunday.
Kerala had never got so much help in the past as it was receiving from the UPA government now, he said.