Kerala's Left Govt's poverty claims misleading, pension promises unfulfilled: Congress leader KC Venugopal

Thiruvananthapuram (Keralam) [India], April 3 (ANI): Congress MP KC Venugopal on Friday slammed the ruling LDF government in Kerala, accusing it of repeatedly making misleading claims on poverty alleviation and failing to fulfil poll promises on social welfare measures.
Addressing reporters here on Friday, Venugopal said, "They claimed that Kerala has been made free of poverty. If that is the case, why are they making the same claim again? Isn't that the biggest proof that the earlier claim itself was misleading? In their manifesto, they promised to increase the pension to Rs 3,000. But if you look at their previous manifesto, they had promised Rs 2,500. For 55 months, they continued to give only Rs 1,500, and it was only three months ago that it was increased to Rs 2,000."

Venugopal further added, "Even now, the Rs 2,500 promised in the 2021 manifesto has not been delivered. This clearly shows that their manifesto is nothing but a major deception. If they are repeating promises they failed to implement over the past ten years, will people believe them again? I don't think so."
In a related development, Congress MP Deepender Singh Hooda highlighted the agrarian crisis in the state while campaigning in Thiruvananthapuram.
"The policies of the LDF and Pinarayi governments have led to a deep agrarian crisis in Kerala. Farmers here face the highest debt levels across all 28 states, with the average household burdened by debts of around 5.5 lakh rupees. This has resulted in severe distress, including suicides. If the UDF is voted to power, as committed by our leader, Rahul Ji, we will provide major relief to Kerala's farmers. For the first time, we will introduce a separate agriculture budget focused on farmers and fishermen, aiming to create a path towards debt-free farming," he told ANI.
Meanwhile, in Alappuzha, Congress leader and Haripad assembly constituency candidate Ramesh Chennithala dismissed the BJP's prospects in Kerala.
"The BJP is not a factor here. Communal politics will not work in Kerala. People here are educated.They (the BJP) do not contest to win, but to cut votes." He further added the party "will decide what I do"." The party will decide who becomes the CM. I believe in the party. There is no inside fight in the party. All the Congress leaders and workers are working together unitedly," he told reporters.
Polling for the 2026 Keralam Legislative Assembly elections will be held on April 9, with the counting of votes on May 4. The tenure of the current assembly is set to conclude on May 23. (ANI)