Will Guru bless his 'dasan' at Varkala?

By N.J. Nair

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM, APRIL 27. It is a prestigious fight for the LDF as well as the UDF in Varkala where they have fielded two trade union leaders, Mr. P.K. Gurudasan and Mr. Varkala Kahar.

The fight assumes significance for the LDF since it has introduced the CPI(M) central committee member and CITU State general secretary, Mr. Gurudasan, to retain the seat. Mr. Gurudasan who was the Kollam district secretary of the CPI(M) for 17 years from 1980 to 1997, is making his debut in electoral politics at the age of 65.

Mr. Kahar, 50, one of the prominent INTUC leaders in the district, had unsuccessfully contested the Assembly elections from Varkala in 1991 against Mr. Varkala Radhakrishnan. He lost by a margin of 3,000 votes. Now it has become a prestige issue for the UDF to regain the seat.

The UDF hopes to cash in on the personal and local contacts of Mr. Kahar. Mr. Gurudasan is banking on the strong roots of the CPI(M) to counter the family and personal ties of Mr. Kahar.

In the last elections, the CPI(M) candidate, Mr. A. Ali Hassan, won the seat defeating the former general secretary of SNDP Yogam, Mr. G. Priyadarsan, by a margin of 26,389 votes. The constituency comprises one municipality and seven panchayats. The municipality and two panchayats, Elakamon and Manampoor, are being ruled by the UDF.

Both the fronts are systematically running the campaign giving top priority to development of the constituency. The LDF is conducting family meetings other than organising squads and corner meetings.

Mr. Gurudasan is highlighting the achievements of the LDF Government and the economic policies of the NDA Government which had a bearing on the public distribution system and industrial sector of the State.

Mr. Kahar says that the State Government had done precious little for developing the constituency. Nothing substantial has been done to exploit the vast tourism potential. Drinking water is still a major problem. Mr. Kahar said that there was rampant misuse of Government machinery and even the neighbourhood groups formed as part of the People's Plan Campaign are being used to solicit votes.

The vandalisation of the statues of Sree Narayana Guru, the CPI(M) stand on the SFI-led agitation at the Sree Narayana College, Kollam, are also being raised by the UDF as major campaign issues. The UDF leaders say that Mr. Gurudasan had inaugurated the fast organised by the SFI in front of the college and also master-minded the agitation against the S.N. Trust.

The SFI agitation and the alleged failure of the Government to book the culprits behind the destruction of Guru statues are proof of the CPI(M)'s attitude to the Ezhava community which forms majority in the constituency. Had the Government and the CPI(M) been sincere to the community, they would have brought out the real culprits behind these incidents, Mr. Kahar said.

Mr. Gurudasan described the charges as baseless. ``The people who attacked the house of the late M.K. Raghavan in 1991 are behind the vandalisation of the statues of the Guru,'' he said.

``There are differences of opinion between students and various college managements. It is a fact that I inaugurated the fast. I intervened only to find an amicable solution to the issue without damaging the future of the students and the reputation of the management,'' he said.

The CPI(M) can never take a stand against Sree Narayana Guru, the SNDP Yogam or the community which stood for liberating society from the shackles of casteism and communalism, he said. He denied the charge that Government machinery was used for campaigning.

Both fronts claim to enjoy the support of the SNDP and the NSS. But the SNDP stand would prove crucial for both fronts.

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Section  : Southern States
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