CONGRESS spokesman and chairman of the joint parliamentary committee (JPC) that is probing the 2G spectrum scam, P C Chacko, has admitted that the Congress is facing an adverse situation in the Lok Sabha election. Addressing a Meet the Press programme in the Eranakulam Press Club recently, Chacko said that the Congress had no scope of victory would have to sit in the opposition benches this time.  According to Chacko, Congress leaders including the prime minister had failed to convince the people about the measures taken regarding the 2G scam. Other controversies too have come to the forefront. The prime minister’s reluctance to face the media has also caused a setback and his silence has led to interpretations, Chacko said. Chacko, whose name was suggested to contest Thrissur, his sitting seat, managed to change his constituency to Chalakkudi while K P Dhanapalan, sitting MP from Chalakkudi, was compelled to move from Chalakkudi to Thrissur. Dhanapalan publicly protested this decision by Congress leadership.  To a question on this seat swapping, Chacko said he changed the constituency on the basis of larger personal contacts with the voters. Dhanapalan may have to face some problem as Chacko has begun his campaign.  Reacting to the sudden attack on Congress leadership by a senior leader, KPCC president V M Sudheeran said he did not subscribe to Chacko’s view, adding that they would make an inquiry on the circumstances in which the statement was made.  Kerala home minister and former PCC president Ramesh Chennithala said he was not aware of the reason of the statement. He hoped that the Congress would come to power. K R GAURI AMMA AT LDF MEETING ALAPPUZHA, a town which has witnessed a number of struggles and upsurges in the past, was once again thrilled and excited when veteran leader K R Gauri Amma came to the Left Democratic Front (LDF) stage. Gauri Amma said it was her home coming after long two decades. Thousands of people gathered in the town on March 17 to attend a convention where C B Chandrababu, the CPI(M)’s former district secretary who is to contest the Alappuzha seat, welcomed the old leader amid thundering slogans.   Leaving behind the past years with the Congress led UDF, Gauri Amma’s Janadhipathya Samrakshana Samithi (JSS) recently decided to cooperate with the LDF. Senior communist leaders of Kerala like V S Achuthanandan and P K Chandranandan were also present onn the stage to welcome Gauri Amma who served as a minister in the first communist government led by E M S Namboodiripad in 1957-59. LDF candidate C B Chandrababu, CPI(M) district secretary Saji Cherian and R Nasar presented Gauri Amma a red shawl. Addressing an emotionally charged crowd, Gauri Amma said this month marked the 20th year of her exit from the party. “I have faced many crises. My home coming is meant to help the people to finish off the Congress misrule. People do not want this kind of rule which makes the life of common people miserable. In Kerala traditional industries like coir have been destroyed by the UDF government. Myself and my small party will work along with the Left parties to ensure a peaceful life to every Keralite.” PINARAYI’S STATEMENT ON March 14, CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan appealed to all the democratic, secular and anti-fascist forces to come forward to strengthen the LDF in Kerala and a non-Congress, non-BJP alliance all over the country. While the BJP and the Congress are two sides of same coin in regard to economic policies as well as corruption, the BJP is trying to materialise an extreme fascist policy and programme. In the last five years, neo-liberal policies have made the common people’s life miserable, Pinarayi added. Big corporates and imperialist powers are eagerly trying to ensure the uninterrupted implementation of neo-liberal economic policies and to prevent a third force from coming to power. For this purpose, they would interfere by all means and provide huge amount of money for it. All organisations working together with the Left forces must come forward to expose this conspiracy, Vijayan said. The CPI(M) leader said the Forward Bloc, that has been working to strengthen the Left unity, had put forward certain suggestions in its discussion with the Left Democratic Front, and that the process of discussion was to continue. In the meanwhile, the FB announced to field some candidates but later withdrew the decision and decided to work sincerely to make all LDF candidates victorious. Pinarayi welcomed it. As for the JSS, led by Gauri Amma, which has also decided to quit the UDF and try to work for the LDF victory, Pinarayi said it was a major setback to the UDF and would accelerate its downfall. The LDF has discussed and decided the matters regarding seat sharing. The Indian National League (INL) has been cooperating with the LDF for some time and was a part of its struggles to expose the anti-people Congress and communal fascistic BJP. The INL has already asked for inclusion in the LDF, and an LDF meeting has already discussed about its relations with the INL, Forward Bloc and JSS. The LDF has decided to cooperate with these parties and to take decisions on other matters later, Pinarayi said.  As the LDF victory would help to keep Congress and BJP away from power, Pinarayi appealed to the INL to withdraw its decision to field candidates.  HIGH COURT SEVERELY CRITICISES CHIEF MINISTER IN a significant and relevant intervention in the middle of the Lok Sabha election process, Kerala High Court has sharply criticised the chief minister, Oommen Chandy, while hearing a case of fraud by Salim Raj, his former aide. On March 13, the court said the chief minister bore full responsibility for the land deal fraud perpetrated by Salim Raj. In his remarks, Justice Haroon Al Rashid stressed that the chief minister had not taken any action against Salim Raj even after many complaints were lodged against this staff member. Laxity of morality on the part of public servants is a common phenomenon, the court said. It also dismissed the government’s argument that the case against Salim Raj was a creation of the media, asked whether the capture of Salim Raj by the people in a kidnapping case was also a media creation, and added that the mobile phone used by Salim Raj belonged to the chief minister. The court made the strictures while considering the plea for a CBI inquiry into the land purchase fraud by Salim Raj.  RSP LEGISLATORS MUST RESIGN: VS ON March 16, opposition leader and CPI(M) Central Committee member V S Achuthanandan demanded that RSP legislators A A Azees and Kovoor Kunjumon must show the minimum democratic sense by resigning from the assembly. While inaugurating a massive convention held in Kollam, VS urged the RSP leaders to follow the precedence shown by Selvaraj, a former CPI(M) MLA from Neyyattinkara, who resigned and sought re-election. It will be recalled that, recently, N K Premachandran of RSP who remained with the LDF for 30 long years, suddenly became the UDF candidate in Kollam. He was active in leading the grand day-night siege of the Kerala secretariat along with other LDF leaders. But after he contacted the chief minister and other Congress leaders one fine morning, he retracted from his earlier position. Now the people of Kerala need a reply from Premachandran on the solar panel scam, VS added. FOUR LDF CANDIDATES FILE NOMINATIONS ON March 19, four LDF candidates including CPI(M) Central Committee member A Vijayaraghavan filed nominations for the April 10 Lok Sabha polls in Kerala. Vijayaraghavan, who would contest from Kozhikode constituency, handed over his nomination papers to the district collector. Besides Vijayaraghavan, A Sampath (sitting MP from Attingal) and A N Shamseer (candidate for Vadakara) also filed nomination papers. These candidates chose the E M S Namboodiripad’s death anniversary day to file their nominations. Another LDF candidate, C N Jayadevan (CPI), who would contest the Thrissur constituency, also filed his papers on the day.   CPI ANNOUNCES CANDIDATES ON March 11 evening, CPI general secretary S Sudhakar Reddy announced the names of its candidates who would contest four Lok Sabha seats in Kerala. These CPI candidates are Dr Benet Abraham (Thiruvananthapuram), Chengara Surendran (Mavelikkara), C N Jayadevan (Thrissur) and Sathyan Mokeri (Wayanad). Dr Benet hails from Karakknam in Thiruvananthapuam and heads the CSI Medical Mission. Though born in a poor family, he has a high educational background but turned a social worker. Chengara Surendran won twice from Adoor constituency. A post graduate in chemistry, he started his political career in the AISF. He is now an executive member of the CPI’s Pathanamthitta district committee. C N Jayadevan works as the CPI’s Thrissur district secretary. He would contest the Thrissur constituency the second time. Sathyan Mokeri is a senior kisan leader from Kozhikode district. CONGRESS SEATS WILL BE IN TWO DIGITS: PINARAYI IN the Lok Sabha elections this time, the seat tally of the Congress would be reduced to two digits at the national level. This was what CPI(M) Polit Bureau member Pinarayi Vijayan said on March 19, while addressing a gathering near E M S Namboodiripad’s statue in front of the Kerala legislative assembly at Thiruvananthapuram. The day marked the 16th death anniversary of EMS. Pinarayi said the people of India are out to oust the Congress from power.  The CPI(M) leader added that the huge defeat the Congress suffered in the recent assembly elections in five states was going to be repeated in the Lok Sabha elections, stressing that the people of India have suffered enough from the Congress’ wrongdoings. Pinarayi also said the BJP was trying to utilise the people’s wrath against the Congress but it is sure it won’t be the winner, as this communal party has no base in a majority of the states. The people of India desire a non-Congress non-BJP formation to be the victor. Trends indicate that such a coalition is likely to come to power. In Kerala the Congress will definitely use money power in the elections but the people of Kerala would come forward to defeat the UDF. This would be the most befitting tribute to a leader like late Comrade EMS, he said. Opposition leader V S Achuthanandan, CPI(M) state secretariat member Anathalavattom Anandan and its Thiruvananthapuram district secretary M Vijayakumar also attended the function.