Political Vengeance

#Vigilance_Investigation_against_Gyanesh_Kumar_A_New_Face_of_Political_Vengeance.

The Kerala government's move to launch a vigilance investigation against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, reviving allegations of corruption during his tenure as Public Works Secretary in Kerala, is questionable and politically motivated. Vigilance had previously investigated complaints related to this for several years. The cases were closed in 2012 due to insufficient evidence to prove the allegations. 

In that case, what is the urgency of reviving allegations that are almost two decades old now? If new evidence has been received, let them be examined legally. But dusting off an investigation that was closed earlier in the new political situation will naturally raise doubts. 

 The Congress-led government in Kerala, in the backdrop of the nationwide protests against Gyanesh Kumar by the Congress, the opposition Indi Alliance and the PATA party, has strengthened the suspicion that the vigilance investigation is part of political revenge. The situation in which the state administration is being used for a political struggle against the head of the Election Commission, a constitutionally independent institution, is not a decoration for democracy.

If there is disagreement with the decisions of the Election Commissioner, there are constitutional and legal ways to question it. Instead, using old allegations that have been locked up as political weapons will affect the dignity of democratic institutions and the credibility of investigative agencies alike. No one should object to conducting an impartial investigation based on new evidence; but the tendency to use vigilance for political interests should be strongly condemned.

If this is the government's policy, it is likely that the ministers and secretaries in power today will face many vigilance investigations in the future.

-K. A. Solaman

Revenue Department needs reform

#DigitalSurvey_Scam #Revenue_Department_Needs_Reforms_Immediately

​Reports that Revenue Minister A.P. Anilkumar is likely to become the new KPCC President are welcome. If that happens and he vacates the ministerial post, it will be a great relief to the people. Because his actions so far show that the current minister has not been able to straighten out the Revenue Department, which has become a hotbed of corruption.

​The 'Digital Survey' scam implemented during the previous government has led to massive corruption and public disaffection in the Revenue Department. In the name of digital survey, ordinary landowners are being harassed by changing the type of land and manipulating the area. People are being sent back when they go to pay their taxes at village offices, saying that the size of the land is different or the type has changed.

 ​There is a serious allegation that revenue officials conspired to grab land under the guise of digital survey in the absence of landowners. Despite tens of thousands of people visiting village and taluk offices and approaching courts, there has been no solution from the side of the revenue department. Despite daily news about this in the media, the revenue minister continues to be inactive.

People firmly believe that as long as A.P. Anilkumar continues in this position, these problems will not be solved.

​Therefore, it is imperative that A.P. Anilkumar be replaced and some young representative of the people with capacity and willpower should be appointed as the revenue minister. 

The common people should not be troubled any more in the name of digital survey. I request that there should be immediate intervention from the government to resolve these huge irregularities in the revenue department and ensure justice to the people.

​- K. A. Solaman

Political leaders have a no responsibility?

#Political_Leaders #HaveNoResponsibility?

The leaders of the Indi alliance have no hesitation in sitting together and increasing the salaries of MLAs, having dinners in fancy hotels, and going to Delhi to hug each other. But why do they create political enmity and conflict among their ranks, especially among student and youth organizations? 

Why are leaders who can cooperate with each other and share power and maintain personal friendships unable to motivate their own ranks for peaceful political work? This double standard of friendship between leaders and enmity among the ranks is the biggest example of political hypocrisy.

The leadership of the CPM should give a clear answer to the incident in which the convocation ceremony of the Maharaja's College, Ernakulam, attended by Higher Education Minister and Congress leader Roji M. John, was disrupted by the CPM's student organization. Who instigated them to turn an official ceremony that was supposed to honor the academic achievements of students into a stage for political struggle?

 If there are differences of opinion, there are many ways to express it democratically. Instead, the political morality of the leaders who let the youth fight on the streets should be questioned. Don't the leaders who join hands for their own convenience and political gains have a responsibility to protect the peace and future of their ranks? Leaders, have you no shame? 

The students who were supposed to attend the convocation next year or the year after that and receive their degree certificates were the ones who committed the atrocities that shocked even the parents of their seniors

Can't we at least stop this political drama of pitting the youth against each other for their own political interests?

-K. A. Solaman

#SalaryHikeForMLAS

#SalaryHikeForMLAs

The state's financial crisis and the hunger faced by ordinary citizens are of no concern to our MLAs. While the ruling and opposition MLAs may engage in brawls in the Legislative Assembly ostensibly over issues like unemployment or the budget, they are perfectly united when it comes to increasing their own salaries and perks!

It seems that the 70,000 rupees and other benefits currently received by our "hard-working" public representatives who somehow managed to become millionaires while "serving the people", are simply not enough! If they are shedding tears, claiming they lack the funds to even move about their own constituencies, why don't they just resign and take up work under an employment guarantee scheme instead?

At a time when hundreds of thousands of young people, who would be willing to serve the state for even less, are left wandering without jobs, these government representatives have gone ahead and passed a financial package for themselves worth lakhs. And as if that weren't enough, they’ve also allocated 6.71 crore rupees to purchase iPads for MLAs, presumably so they can play games while sitting in the Assembly!

If this kind of behavior continues, the youth of Kerala will stop making the "mistake" of studying to become IAS officers or doctors. Instead, they will simply join a political party, aiming to become an MLA, a minister, a member of the PSC, or the chairman of a corporation.  The sight of young people engaging in political work for a daily wage is nothing new in our land. Kerala long ago transformed into a place with the world’s highest number of 'full-time politicians', people who live off the labor of others without doing any productive work themselves. 

When the public observes this political alliance, a partnership so seamless that its members never squabble over how to carve up the spoil, as they pass bills in the dead of night to distribute funds collected through excessive taxation, the people will simply stare up at the sky, wide-eyed and utterly bewildered, not knowing what to do. Under the guise of the law, those in power will strip the common man of every last penny in his pocket.

- K. A. Solaman

#Governor's #Recommendation

#Governor's #Recommendation #Correct and #Congratulatory

The Public Service Commission is the last hope of lakhs of educated candidates. The PSC Chairman and members have turned such an institution into a center of nepotism and corruption. Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar's recommendation to the President for their dismissal is a commendable step. 

This strong stand taken by a Head of State against such corruptions that are gambling with the future of ordinary youth is a protection of democratic values. 

Constitutionally, under Article 317, the power to remove the Chairman and members of a State Public Service Commission is vested in the President on the basis of the investigation report of the Supreme Court. In the event of serious allegations coming to light regarding the PSC, the Governor's action in bringing the matter to the attention of the President for appropriate investigation and action is completely legal and constitutionally valid.

 This firm step against injustice will help restore the trust of the people. . The UDF government should be ready to provide all support to the Governor's recommendation without justifying the irregularities related to the previous government.

-K. A. Solaman

Governor's Kitchen

#What's #AICC's #business in the #Governor's #Kitchen?

It is the head of the household who decides what to cook in his own kitchen, not the local people. Even the cooks were surprised to see a protest break out in Delhi before the mustard was even cooked in the Lok Bhavan's china pot. Under which section does the Governor, who took oath and took charge, decide what to serve on the dinner table in his own house and it becomes a "saffron agenda"? If this continues, people are worried that if sambar is served in any house today, will it have to be sent for the approval of Congress General Secretary KC. 

The fact that a person sitting in the post of AICC General Secretary finds time to interfere in the salt and flour of a kitchen when there are so many big problems in the country is seen as proof of karma, but a rethinking of priorities is very good. Now, if we take the issue of food freedom, no one's freedom may be undermined just because fish and meat are not cooked in Lok Bhavan.  This reform is not a stone edict, but only until the end of the governor's term. If the governor who comes tomorrow is satisfied with only dum biryani, democracy will pave the way for that too.

Employees who are hungry for non-veg food in Lok Bhavan have hot stalls waiting outside the gate. When there are modern food courts serving beef fries and fried fish in every nook and corner of Kerala, it remains to be seen whether the Lok Bhavan kitchen is portrayed as an ideological battlefield due to ignorance or a knowing game. Employees who want to change their lavana because they do not get biryani cannot be denied the facility.

If the food rights of employees are actually being restricted, then we can criticize it based on facts. But we should not criticize the entire menu in a kitchen as a serving vessel for Sangh Parivar politics. Criticism is good in politics; but we should not try to add a hearthstone of divisive politics to every kitchen.

-KA Solaman

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Stock market crash

#StockMarket #Crash

The sustained decline in the Indian stock market has posed a severe threat to the savings of ordinary investors. An investment of one lakh rupees made just a few weeks ago has now shrunk significantly. Small-scale investors are deeply concerned that if this trend continues, they might lose their capital entirely.

This market downturn cannot be dismissed as a mere temporary fluctuation. Those who encourage the public to invest in the market must also reflect on their own accountability when losses occur.

It is incorrect to gauge the overall health of the market solely by the success of a specific share issue such as that of Jio Platforms. The response to a single offering is distinct from the performance of the market as a whole. If investor enthusiasm is touted as proof of the market's inherent strength, it is only fair to ask why a similar level of concern is not shown when that same capital is placed at risk.

In the past, during major market downturns, one could expect interventions from the Finance Minister or announcements aimed at reassuring the public. The market interventions during P. Chidambaram’s tenure as Finance Minister serve as an example. Today, however, amidst this market crash, the public expects greater clarity regarding the Finance Ministry’s response and the potential interventions of public sector financial institutions, such as the LIC.  It is not the government's duty to artificially prop up the stock market; rather, its role is to ensure transparency and investor protection, and to clarify the reasons behind any undue market volatility.

Those who celebrate the gains during periods of market growth must also address the concerns of investors when the market declines. Otherwise, the ordinary person—who enters the stock market with the hope of building long-term savings will come to view it not as a platform for investment, but as a gambling den where one ends up losing their hard-earned money.

The current state of the Indian stock market can be summed up as: "If you have money to lose, go ahead and enter the Indian stock market."

— K. A. Solaman