The Kerala floods have tested the resolve and the commitment of the nation towards their own brethren in times of adversity quite well. One of the worst disasters to strike the state in almost a century, torrential rains, followed by improper arrangements to check the same, led to a devastating calamity leaving hundreds of people dead, several others missing and many stranded or homeless.
Beginning with the armed forces at hand, help poured in from all quarters. Despite the muckraking by local communists, the Central government, followed by other state governments, assisted the Keralites in every way possible. Even the temples opened their coffers to assist the stranded, while volunteers of RSS and Khalsa Aid took pains to lessen the burden on the government machinery.
However, when so much positivity surfaced, a dark side to this episode also came out. Despite such a devastating disaster, all the CM of this state cares about is his personal medical treatment, for which he is moving to USA within a week or two. Worse, this shall be done on the expense of the state, which is ultimately to be borne by the taxpayers.
We’re no strangers to the fact that Kerala floods were more of a manmade disaster than a natural one, for the state was completely negligent to the need of enforcing strict checks on the measures to prevent the flooding in the state. Worse, as the state was ravaged by floods, the liquor consumption shot up really high.
To top that all, the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan has now left for USA for his personal treatment at Mayo Clinic in Rochester. The government is tight lipped about the nature of his ailment, and the number of days that shall be spent in USA. According to a Times Now report on the same, “…..According to a report by The News Minute, Pinarayi Vijayan is accompanied by his wife Kamala. There is no confirmation on the number of days the Chief Minister will be there as it depends on the check-ups and his doctors.”
According to the media reports, “Pinarayi Vijayan will be in New York for three weeks. There is no report on the nature of his ailment. Earlier in March this year, Pinarayi Vijayan was admitted to the Apollo Hospital Chennai………”
In the absence of CM, Minister of Industries EP Jayarajan will chair the Cabinet meetings and also oversee the proceedings of the CM Relief Distress Fund. With that, one tends to think, was it really necessary for the CM to leave his state at a time when the people have barely managed to recover from the devastating effects of the floods?
Despite the state incurring a loss of more than Rs. 19512 crores approximately, the CM has chose to go abroad for his treatment, on the expense of the state exchequer. Isn’t that something often done by Arvind Kejriwal whenever his region of Delhi is in distress?
Ironically, the ideologues of the party abhor the concept of taking any benefits from a capitalist state, and USA is just one such state. Hypocrisy much? One would laugh when they remember the CM’s recommendation to UP CM Yogi Adityanath of visiting the state hospitals. Couldn’t Pinarayi Vijayan get himself cured in one such hospital back home?
This presents one of the ugliest, yet the true face of communism. They’re not only double faced, but also extremely negligent to the needs of their masses, caring only about filling their own pockets. It is only a matter of time before people get to know their darker side and kick them out of power like the way UP did to Akhilesh Yadav in 2017.