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Keralam BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Thursday launched a sharp attack on the previous CPI(M)-led government, alleging that the state's economy was being managed like a Ponzi scheme, further claiming that the true fiscal situation had been hidden from the public.
Referring to the recently released White Paper on Keralam's finances, Chandrasekhar said, "I have been saying for the last year and three months that the economy was being mismanaged to such an extent by the CPI(M) government that it resembled a Ponzi scheme. Everything was camouflaged with fictitious figures, and the people of Kerala were misled about the real condition of the state's economy." BJP leader welcomed the White Paper, saying it had brought greater transparency to Keralam's financial position. "Even though it is a UDF Chief Minister who has initiated this transparency, it is a welcome and necessary step. The fiscal status report itself points to the need for urgent measures to sustain the economy and also recommends raising the retirement age," Chandrasekhar said. He said the White Paper had validated concerns raised earlier about the state's finances and underscored the need for reforms to restore fiscal stability and ensure sustainable economic growth. Keralam Chief Minister VD Satheesan on Thursday tabled in the Legislative Assembly the White Paper on the financial status of the State. Satheesan, who has the charge of the finance portfolio in the United Democratic Front government in the state tabled the initial budget and white paper on the State's finances in the assembly following the United Democratic Front's election victory. The White Paper comes ahead of the presentation of the revised State Budget on June 19. Addressing the assembly today, the Keralam CM said that no confidential or classified material has been included in the White Paper, adding that this action aligns with people's right to know the state of Keralam's finances. "A point of order is ordinarily not raised before a White Paper is formally laid on the Table of the House. No confidential document has been disclosed outside the government. The White Paper has been prepared with the approval and consent of the Cabinet. The people of Kerala have a right to know the true state of the state's finances. The information contained in the document is already available in the public domain. There is no confidential or classified material included in it," he said. Speaker Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan said that the White Paper has received the approval of council ministers and has been placed before the house. The White Paper comes ahead of the presentation of the revised State Budget on June 19. A committee chaired by former Union Cabinet secretary K M Chandrasekhar drafted the White Paper. Economist and former Director of the Gulati Institute of Finance and Taxation, D Narayana, and Professor and Director of the Centre for Development Studies C Veeramani, were other members of the committee and Additional Chief Secretary (Finance) KR Jyothilal was the convener of the committee. (ANI)
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