Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman has accused both Left Democratic Front (LDF) and United Democratic Front (UDF) of turning Kerala into one of the five fiscally stressed States in the country. Fiscal mismanagement of the State’s finances is the greatest tragedy faced by the people of Kerala, she added.
The Union Minister also accused the LDF government of driving investors away and pushing the State towards de-industrialisation, while inaugurating National Democratic Alliance (NDA)’s Thiruvananthapuram Parliament election convention as part of its candidate Rajeev Chandrasekhar’s campaign here on Thursday.
Ms. Sitharaman said the State government has far exceeded its permitted borrowing limit of 3% and has resorted to extra-budgetary borrowing to the tune of ₹42,285 crore for six years from 2016-17. The borrowings are being made through entities such as Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB) that have no revenue sources of their own. Besides such borrowings are not cleared by the Kerala Assembly.
She also claimed that Kerala is one of only two States (along with Punjab) to have developmental expenditure of less than 50%.
The Minister also sought to punch holes in the State’s allegations of being denied eligible claims by the Centre. Kerala, she said, has received ₹1,55,649 crore in tax devolution and ₹1,58,983 crore as grants-in-aid by the Narendra Modi governments from 2014-2024. These are manifold times the corresponding allocations of ₹46,303 crore and ₹25,629 crore that had been received during the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) rule between 2004-14, “despite there being eight Ministers from the State”.
“I want to assure the people of Kerala that what you are entitled to get and what you have to get is coming in time from Modi’s tax devolution. I assure you that no paisa recommended by the Finance Commission has been denied (to the State),” Ms. Sitharaman said.
The BJP leader likened to “Matryoshka dolls” the unravelling of scandals, including the diplomatic gold smuggling case and Karuvannur Bank fraud case, that have rocked the State.
Earlier, addressing economic experts, industry leaders, and financial professionals, Ms. Sitharaman advocated the need for political continuity to ensure the economic stability of the country.
She also highlighted the significance for Kerala, particularly Thiruvananthapuram, to have a direct representation in policy making.
