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KERALA BUDGET 2023: Cess on petrol, diesel, liquor

KN Balagopal

Another hike has come in the taxes for new vehicles, registration of land and also fees charged for government services.

Kerala Finance Minister K.N.Balagopal on Friday presented the Pinarayi Vijayan 2.0 government’s second budget proposing a Rs 2 cess on petrol and diesel in addition to a Rs 20 hike on Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL).

Not only has it proposed a hike in property taxes, but also levied an additional tax on those who own a second home and on all homes that are kept locked.

Another hike has come in the taxes for new vehicles, registration of land and also fees charged for government services. Besides, the judicial fee will also be increased.

Denouncing the increased taxes, the Congress-led Opposition termed the budget a “tool” to loot the people and announced to launch a massive protest against it.

Leader of Opposition V.D.Satheesan called it a daylight dacoity signalled through the budget.

“At no cost will we allow this indiscriminate hiking of taxes and cess on petrol and diesel. We are going to launch an indefinite state-wide protest till the government rolls back the hikes as this budget will surely break the spine of the man on the street.”

A tippler, reacting to the hike in liquor price, said from now on three pegs daily, the consumption will have to be halved.

At the commercial capital of the state – Kochi, the Congress workers staged a protest and burnt the copies of the budget against the Rs 2 cess on petrol and diesel.

However, Balagopal defended the hike in taxes and said the only way to raise additional resources is to increase the price of liquor and through the cess on petrol and diesel.

“The Centre has reduced the borrowing of our government by around Rs 2,700 crore and the only way to go forward is to hike the tax on petrol, diesel and liquor,” he said.

As soon as the budget presentation was over, the Opposition rose to protest and raised slogans demanding the immediate withdrawal of hike in taxes as it will lead to huge price rise.

Satheesan, while inaugurating a protest march in front of a petrol pump at Kollam, said the burden on the man on the street due to these hiked taxes will come to Rs 4000 crore.

“This hike comes at a time when the Left government and their leaders are always up in arms demanding the reduction of fuel prices. Likewise, the hike in liquor prices will lead to an increase in the consumption of drugs. The coming days will see more protests,” warned Satheesan.

ALSO READ: Kerala man, who rolled beedis for livelihood, becomes a judge in US

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India News Kerala Politics

Cabinet 2.0: Will it be easy or tough for Pinarayi?

Vijayan entered the history books by leading the Left Democratic Front government to its second successive win when he increased his tally from 91 seats to 99…reports Asian Lite News

The difficult task of winning the elections over, will Pinarayi Vijayan now have it easy or tough, as starting Thursday he begins talks for the composition of Version-2 Pinarayi cabinet.

Vijayan entered the history books by leading the Left Democratic Front government to its second successive win when he increased his tally from 91 seats to 99 in the 140-member Kerala Legislative Assembly.

According to the rules the cabinet can have a maximum strength of 21 including the Chief Minister. There are three other posts which come with cabinet status — Assembly Speaker, Deputy Speaker and Chief Whip.

In the outgoing Vijayan cabinet the CPI-M had 12 Ministers and the Chief Minister’s post, the second biggest ally CPI had four ministers with one each for the Nationalist Congress Party, the Congress (S) and the Janata Dal (S).


However this time the Left has given full fledged ally status to the Kerala Congress (B), the Indian National League (INL) besides two new allies who jumped the fence from the Congress led Opposition — Kerala Congress (Mani) and Loktantrik Janata Dal.

Then there is Kovoor Kunjumon who has been a fellow traveller of the Left ever since he came from the UDF, ahead of the 2016 assembly polls and this time he won his fifth straight election.

A media critic on condition of anonymity said that it may be tough for Vijayan to do the balancing act but Vijayan, given his now exalted status, should be able to finalise all the posts quickly.

Also read:Pinarayi creates history, Mamata humbles BJP

“All what now remains to be seen is, in his first outing his cabinet had 20 people, even when he could have added one more. If it’s going to be like last time, then all the allies will not be able to be accommodated. But if it has to take place, the CPI-M and the CPI will have to end up with lesser posts than in 2016, which can be tough, especially the CPI who might raise a hue and cry,” said the critic.

In 2016, while the Speaker’s post was taken by the CPI-M, this time too it will be the same. The CPI got the Deputy Speaker’s and the Chief Whip’s posts.

Meanwhile there are reports that veteran outgoing Minister Kadanapally Ramachandran, the lone Cong (S) legislator, who won again might be left out this time.

But filmstar turned legislator KB Ganesh Kumar of the Kerala Cong( B) is in all likelihood to get the nod.

The INL party and Kovoor Kunjumon have given letters to Vijayan that they should be considered when posts are decided.

Later on Thursday, he along with his party leaders will have a one to one talk with the CPI and if the CPI agrees to sacrifice one cabinet post, then Vijayan will be able to run through the proceedings with the others smoothly. If not, then there will have to be further discussions.

With the Covid pandemic raging in Kerala and the state in a semi-lockdown mode, Vijayan has decided to wait a while before the swearing in date is fixed. As things stand it could happen in the third week of May, hence, he will have enough time to wrap up talks with his allies.

Also read:Pinarayi to bring back Kodiyeri very soon

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India News Kerala Politics

Vijayan dedicates win to people

Pinarayi Vijayan also tore into the Congress-led opposition, the BJP as well as a section of the media….reports Asian Lite News

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who broke a four-decade-old trend of one term governments in the state as he led his Left Democratic Front to a successive second stint in power, on Sunday dedicated the victory to the people and said they are humbled by the response of the people who supported them and this will be the booster to start work on building a resilient Kerala.

He also tore into the Congress-led opposition, the BJP as well as a section of the media.

Addressing the media at his home base in Kannur when the tally of the victory showed 99 seats for the Left, with the Congress-led Opposition ending up with 41 seats and the BJP which had one seat in the 2016 Assembly polls, failed to get any seat this time, a beaming Vijayan said: “I wish to state that this was a great political fight and this is no doubt a victory of the people and belongs to the people.

“All along after the elections was announced, I had mentioned what is in store and I also said why I have that confidence. Then, I said we believe in the people and people believe in us and that’s why I said we will win more seats than the last time. And it has happened and it happened with the help of the people who beloved in our capabilities as they know, it is only the Left which can work for the welfare and also the development of the state.”

Also read:Vijayan goes hammer and tongs at Shah

“We are deeply honoured by the support of the people who placed their full support on us and it was because of them that we were able to do this. We assure you the people that they can fully trust us and we see ‘power’ as not something to enjoy or to engage in corruption. We have a detailed manifesto which explains everything what we will do as we are one who will promise only what can be done,” he added.

Taking on the BJP, Vijayan said the state saw all its top leaders descend here for the campaign and heard what all was said.

“They even went to the extent of saying that they, without even having the need for the mandatory majority for forming a government, will form the government. When it came to money power, none could match them and what one could see was the ill-effects of having huge money. The victory also shows that our state is not a ground for communal elements like some states in the country,” he said.

Also read:BJP an obstacle to Kerala’s progress: Vijayan

Turning towards the Congress, he said the very existence of the Congress-led UDF is now under a cloud and this has to be discussed.

“Just see what happened when the state suffered a few disasters… what was the role of the Congress-led UDF. When the national agencies came calling here based on few allegations, instead of standing for the interest of the state, they were trying to attack us. The people saw all this and rightfully they did what any person would do and gave us their confidence. So in the best interest of the state, instead of joining hands for the progress of the state, the opposition was out to play spoil sport and the people acted,” said Vijayan.

He then made a blistering attack on a section of the ‘right wing’ media which was “wrongly portraying what we did”.

“Some media houses thought, that everything is under their control and at the tip of their pen. Lot of canards was being spread which were blatant lies and some even launched personal attacks. I wish to tell you (media) that the people know and gauge everything and you do not have any powers, which you think you have,” Vijayan said.

“The media should introspect and we will only be glad if you engage in constructive criticism, which in fact it will be good for us… But that is not what is happening. All what I have to say to you is it is time that you introspect and apply a course correction in the scheme of things that you do. All should understand that we are passing through tough times and hence priorities should be reworked,” he added.

Vijayan said on Monday that he he will submit his resignation to the Governor and then it would be the party which decides on when and how the next step is.

Also read:Vijayan asks pvt hospitals to reserve 25% beds for Covid patients

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Pinarayi leads LDF to historic win in Kerala

Looking at the overall picture, it now appears that the Left is maintaining the same ground as in 2016, when they won 91 seats…reports Asian Lite News.

Present CM of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan is ready for a comeback for another 5 years in the state. ith counting of votes in the Kerala Assembly elections picking pace, and reaching the halfway mark in many of the 140 constituencies, the indications are that the Left is set to rewrite the state’s electoral history by becoming the first government to retain power.

According to present indications, the Left Democratic Front is leading in 93 seats while the Congress-led United Democratic Front in 44 and the BJP in three seats.

The Left’s stunning performance can be attributed to no one other than Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan who led from the front.

In the 2016 polls, it was party stalwart V.S. Achuthanandan who led from the front and after the Left won, Vijayan stepped in to take the Chief Minister’s post, while Achuthanandan was given the post of ‘Kerala Castro’.

Vijayan, despite running into numerous troubles in various issues, stood his ground and boldly went forward. His writ ran large when it came to selecting party candidates, with seven ministers and 26 legislators left out.

Meanwhile, of the 48 seats that the UDF is leading in, its second-largest constituent, the IUML is leading in 12.

E sreedharan

Of the NDA, ‘Metroman’ E. Sreedharan is fighting hard and in one particular booth in his constituency Palakkad, he has got all the votes and at the moment, he is leading by around 5000 votes.

Looking at the overall picture, it now appears that the Left is maintaining the same ground as in 2016, when they won 91 seats.

However, its new ally Kerala Congress-Mani’s leader Jose K.Mani, son of late legendary K.M. Mani whose party was in the Congress-led UDF till last year before switching over to the LDF, was trailing badly by over 10,000 votes in Pala, represented by his father for over half a century.

What will be painful for him is a few of the other candidates from his party are leading.

State Power Minister M.M. Mani, who won the 2016 polls with a slender margin of around 1000 votes, is now leading by a huge margin of 20,000 votes and said this result was on the cards “as there has never been a better government in the state than Vijayan’s”.

The pattern right from the start of the counting of votes was the UDF was unable to move above the 60 seat mark and in many of these constituencies, it is leading with a slender margin and if it continues, then there could be more shocks and the Left might well end up with 100 seats or more.

Also Read-LDF to win big in Kerala

Read More-Kerala Polls: Advantage LDF as Congress Withers

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LDF to win big in Kerala

According to the CVoter Exit Poll for Times Now/ABP News, it’s a straight forward electoral battle between the incumbent LDF and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF)….reports Asian Lite News

The Left Democratic Front (LDF) led by Kerala Chief Minister Pinaryi Vijayan is poised to make a comeback to power in the state for the second time in a row, but not with a thumping majority though,

According to the CVoter Exit Poll for Times Now/ABP News, it’s a straight forward electoral battle between the incumbent LDF and the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF).

The exit poll predicts that the ruling LDF is expected to retain power in the southern state, defying the trend of the incumbent tasting defeat in every second electoral cycle.

The 140-member Kerala Assembly went to the polls in a single phase on April 6.

LDF CPI-M workers celebrate party’s performance

As per the CVoter Exit Poll for Times Now/ABP News, the Left alliance is expected to win 71 to 77 seats, with 71 being the majority mark. The main opposition – the UDF – is likely to secure 62 to 68 seats.

The NDA will continue to remain a marginal player in the state with 0 to 2 seats.

In 2016 Assembly elections, the LDF had won 91 seats, the UDF secured 47 seats, the NDA got one, while one seat went to an Independent.

Also read:Kerala on alert after UK, S.African variants found

According to exit poll data, the ruling LDF is projected to secure 42.8 per cent votes. The UDF is expected to get 41.4 per cent vote share whie the NDA is likely to get 13.7 per cent votes.

In the 2016 Assembly polls, the LDF had got 43.5 per cent vote share, hence the ruling alliance is likely to witness a marginal dip of 0.7 per cent this time.

UDF

The UDF had secured 38.8 per cent votes in 2016, marking a swing of 2.6 per cent this time, while the NDA had secured 14.9 per cent votes last time, showing a dip of 1.7 per cent vote share in the latest polls.

According to the exit poll, the LDF and UDF are expected to secure maximum seats in North Kerala, where the LDF is likely to win 34 to 36 seats, followed by the UDF with 24 to 26 seats.

In South Kerala, the LDF is likely to win 21 to 23 seats and the UDF is expected to garner 15 to 17 seats.

In Central Kerala, the LDF is projected to win 16 to 18 seats, while the UDF is expected to manage 23 to 25 seats.

Also read:Former Kerala DGP Sreelekha slams police for inaction

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In a first, Achuthanandan fails to cast vote

After the Covid pandemic struck, Achuthanandan has been rarely seen in public domain, with visitors kept at bay…reports Asian Lite News.

Former Kerala Chief Minister and one of India’s tallest Communist leaders, V.S. Achuthanandan, failed to cast his vote on Tuesday for the first time in state Assembly elections.

The 97-year-old, who is a sitting legislator from Malampuzha in Palakkad district, is now staying at his son’s residence in the state capital, while his vote is at his home at the Ambalapuzha Assembly constituency in Alappuzha district.

Following some technical issues, he and his wife were unable to register for postal voting and on Tuesday, his health condition was not suitable for the three-hour journey to his home and hence, he could not cast his vote. However, his son and other family members went and cast their votes at Amabalapuzha.

After the Covid pandemic struck, Achuthanandan has been rarely seen in public domain, with visitors kept at bay.

In the 2016 Assembly polls, he, as the Leader of Opposition, was the one who led the Left’s campaign but after their victory, Pinarayi Vijayan became Chief Minister.

Achuthanandan was given the title of ‘Kerala Castro’ and was made Chairman of the Administrative Reforms Commission – a post which was created for him and came with cabinet status.

A seven-time legislator, Achuthanandan recently resigned from the post, vacated his official residence and started living with his son.

In the poll campaign this time around, he failed to make a single public appearance, nor was his picture seen in any poster, with only Vijayan’s images predominating.

In a political career that began in the 1940s, Achuthanandan first became a legislator in 1967 from Alappuzha district, the then fortress of the Communist movement, but when he was all set to become the Chief Minister in 1996, he suffered the worst-ever jolt in his political career by losing the Assembly elections.

However, it was only after his loss, his stock as a politician rose hugely and he went on to become the biggest crowd puller in Kerala politics.

In 2006, he led the Left to victory and became Chief Minister, but in the 2011 poll, he almost created history by retaining power, but the Oommen Chandy-led UDF scrapped through, with a thin margin of just two seats.

Also Read-Sabarimala, the most discussed election topic in Kerala

Read More-UDF eyes Malappuram to win Kerala

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Kerala Politics

Metroman Sreedharan faces tough battle in Palakkad

E sreedharan

The technocrat may garner a few BJP votes, but does not seem to be a winning candidate, reports Ashok parameswar

As the state gears up for polling on April 6, emotions and aspirations remain high. Despite the beating heat, voters in Palakkad are all set to usher in more development to the district. Voters across the constituencies look forward to a complete facelift of the district that has long been to be on a par with other districts of the state.

There are 12 constituencies in Palakkad district, Palakkad, Chittur, Nenmara, Tarur, Mannarkkad, Malampuzha, Alathur, Thrithala, Ottapalam, Pattambi, Kongad,and Shoranur with 73 candidates. According to Palakkad constituency, it was alternately represented by the UDF and the LDF since 1957.

Sitting MLA Shafi Parambil of the UDF who defeated BJP’s Sobha Surendran by 17,483 votes in 2016, is fully confident of representing the constituency for a third term in the legislative assembly and his rival LDF’s Pramod promises to keep up the government’s policies.

Though technocrat E Sreedharan has drawn national attention with his candidature, his political line may not necessarily translate to a win. He may garner a few BJP votes, but does not seem to be a winning candidate. Another determining factor is how the Palakkad municipality, which is being headed by the BJP since 2015 will exercise its vote.

Palakkad stands out as the urban areas align itself to the BJP and beyond it, there’s an unflinching affiliation to the Leftist ideology.

Also read:Ernakulam a key constituency for parties

The UDF might find a challenge in the vote share since the candidature of E Sreedharan might draw up the BJPs vote share a few notches. The UDF might find a challenge in the vote share since the candidature of E Sreedharan might draw up the BJPs vote share by a few margins.

Shafi Parambil

Chittur constituency which shares a border with Tamil Nadu is another seat that is likely to witness a tight contest LDF and UDF. K Krishnan Kutty who was a UDF ally in earlier polls, but won 2016 assembly election in the LDF banner. Tamil votes will be a crucial factor in the upcoming polls because of its lion’s share in Chittur.  

According to recent surveys, the UDF camp is likely to win 7 out of the 12 seats in Palakkad district while LDF would be able to bag 5 seats only. UDF’s V T Balram’s tight fight with LDF’s MB Rajesh would be another factor that grabs the attention of Kerala electoral politics. The promise of the prosperous state as put forward by the present government is yet to receive complete realisation in the district. This will decide its fate.

Also read:UDF eyes Malappuram to win Kerala

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Kerala Politics

UDF eyes Malappuram to win Kerala

UDF

Malappuram likely to be a sweep for UDF, which is depending on IUML to sweep 16 seats, reports Ashok Parameswar

Surprises seem unlikely in Kerala’s Malappuram district this election. The 16 constituencies — the highest number in any district — has been a stronghold of the United Democratic Front (UDF). In the 2016 assembly elections, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) won just four seats here. The remaining seats were wrested by Indian Union Muslim League (IUML), a key constituent of the UDF. The district which has a 70% Muslim population is the bed rock of IUML’s support base in Kerala.

Adding more head to the campaigning, the district is also witnessing a Lok Sabha bypoll. While the LDF has fielded Student’s Federation of India (SFI) national president VP Sanu to take on IUML’s PK Kunhalikutty and Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) AP Abdullakutty.

For the assembly polls, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) is fielding 14 of its candidates and 2 from Bharath Dharma Jana Sena (BDJS). Meanwhile the CPI(M) has fielded five Independents candidates, of the nine the Left coalition is fielding across the state. CPI on the other hand has three candidates with Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Indian National League (INL) fielding one each.

Also read:BJP fields Metroman in Palakkad

The LDF, however, is looking to repeat its 2006 showing, when it swept all the seats in the segment. But the UDF is confident that it will not lose any of its strongholds. The Left’s calculations for defeating the UDF has gained momentum.

The fact that the UDF has put up strong candidates in Thavanur, Ponnani, Tanur and Nilambur constituencies also gives confidence in the formation’s supporters. The contest is stronger than that of the previous election of 2016. It is likely to be a fierce battle in Perinthalmanna and Mankada where the Left Front had lost by a slight margins last elections.

The fight in Thavanur between KT Jaleel and Feroz Kunnamparambil is one of the heated political battle that Kerala is looking forward to. The strongholds of the Muslim League in Malappuram, Kottakkal, Vallikunnu, Vengara and Ernad are unlikely to be shaken.

Malappuram is crucial for the UDF to gain power in Kerala. But unlike other elections, the Muslim League will have to put in sincere work to overcome the challenge posed by the LDF.

Also read:Ernakulam a key constituency for parties