Thiruvananthapuram/Thrissur, Jan 22 (IANS) The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Kerala Thursday called for a state-wide shutdown Tuesday demanding resignation of state Finance Minister K.M. Mani over a bribery allegation while the Left parties decided to boycott him.
While deciding to boycott all official functions of the beleaguered minister, the Left Democratic Front (LDF) also decided to stage a march Feb 3 to the state secretariat to press for Mani's resignation.
With this, the entire opposition in Kerala has decided to mount pressure with protests against Mani after whistle-blower bar owner Biju Ramesh alleged in October last year that Rs.1 crore was given to Mani as the first instalment of the Rs.5 crore he had demanded for reopening bars in the state.
State BJP president V. Muraleedharan told reporters in the state capital after a party meet that the tainted Mani, facing allegations of corruption, will have to go.
"Apart from the bar graft allegations, he has made money by even manipulating the state budget. There is no way he can be allowed to continue. And, to protest, we will be organising a statewide shutdown on Tuesday," said Muraleedharan.
At Thrissur, the LDF leaders' meet decided to boycott all official functions being participated in by Mani.
"We will be marching towards the state secretariat on Feb 3. He has no place to go but to resign. We will not retract until he quits," LDF convenor Vaikom Viswan told reporters in Thrissur.
CPI-M politburo member Kodiyeri Balakrishnan said if Mani is going to present the state budget (March 13), the Kerala assembly will witness never-seen-before incidents.
But state Congress president V.M. Sudheeran said Chief Minister Oommen Chandy has made it very clear that Mani will be presenting the state budget and there is not going to be any change in that.
Early this week, Ramesh gave an audio recording of the conversation to the various TV channels that has since been aired.
On Thursday, he turned up before the vigilance department to give his statement.
"Ever since I started giving out evidence in the bar graft case, my life is in danger and I am writing to the chief minister that I be given police security. I will go forward in this issue and will see that the truth comes out," said Ramesh.
It has been more than 4 months since the Russia-Ukraine war. The attacks are still on. Before the
Sonu Sood, who was praised for his noble deeds during Covid-19, is now facing criticism due to th
In Himachal Pradesh, the high command has started formulating the next strategy as the initial tr
What really caused the train disaster in UP?
Lucknow, March 24 (IANS) Over three days after a train disaster left 38 people dead in Uttar Pr
Telugu news presenter, son killed in road accident
Hyderabad, Feb 8 (IANS) A news reader of a Telugu news channel and his son were killed and thre
Make style statement with mask against pollution, swine flu
New Delhi, Feb 20 (IANS) Here comes a mask that not only protects you from air pollution and swi
Ladakh environmentalist Sonam Wangchuk, who was arrested after the violent protests in Leh on Sep
Movie theaters across the country have been closed since 23 March. Unlock 4.0 guidelines expire o
India's young shuttler Lakshya Sen reached the men's singles semi-finals on Friday. He has become
The model of Ghazwa-e-Hind was prepared for terror in India. Its command was in the hands of Paki
