A political row has erupted in Kerala after Public Works Department Minister Muhammad Riyas was dropped from the list of invitees to an event in Kochi where Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate and dedicate to the nation several key development projects on Wednesday.
Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and ministers M.B. Rajesh and K. Krishnankutty have been invited to the function. However, local media reports said Vijayan is unlikely to attend as the state government is planning to boycott the event in protest against Riyas not being invited.
During his brief visit to the state, Modi will inaugurate projects worth Rs 10,800 crore undertaken by various central ministries, including the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, the Ministry of Rural Development, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, and the Ministry of Railways.
Among the projects to be inaugurated are the Thalappady–Chengala stretch of the Mumbai–Kanyakumari economic corridor, the redeveloped Kozhikode bypass, and 23 roads constructed under the Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana.
The Kerala government maintains that since it was responsible for acquiring and handing over land for the national highway project, it has a significant stake in the development. It therefore views the exclusion of Riyas from the event—while BJP state president Rajeev Chandrasekhar is among the invitees—as politically motivated.
Other invitees include Union ministers Suresh Gopi and George Kurian, Members of Parliament Benny Behanan and Hibi Eden, and MLA Uma Thomas.
Responding to his exclusion, Riyas termed it an insult to the state. “NH-66 was a stalled project. The National Highways Authority office was closed during the UDF rule. The project was started after LDF came,” he was quoted as saying by Manoramaonline.
For the first time in history, the state has spent Rs 5600 crores for the development of national highways, the minister added.
According to the schedule, Modi will land at Cochin International Airport around 11 am and then travel by helicopter to the Kochi Naval Base. At 11.30 am, he will inaugurate the golden jubilee conference of the All Kerala Dheevara Sabha at Marine Drive. Later, he will proceed to the Jawaharlal Nehru International Stadium in Kaloor.
At the Kaloor stadium, after inaugurating the central government projects, Modi will address the National Democratic Alliance’s Kerala election rally. The convention will mark the formal launch of the alliance’s campaign for the upcoming Assembly elections in the state.
According to organisers, around 50,000 party workers are expected to attend the event. After completing the programmes in Kochi, Modi is scheduled to leave for Tiruchirappalli in Tamil Nadu at around 2.30 pm.
