Kozhikode: Metro man E Sreedharan who is all set to join the Bharathiya Janata Party (BJP) says there is no unity and harmony within the State chapter of the party.
In an exclusive interview with the ETV Bharat, Sreedharan said that he is surprised why the state BJP leaders have not attempted to work on resolving the discord within the party.
"In a national party that rules the country, there should be no such disharmony. That must change. It is not late yet. BJP has not tried to consolidate communities, including minorities. The party’s agenda on Hindutva is not right. For a country to progress, all people should unite and come together. Though Kerala has a majority of Hindus, there are people from other communities also living in Kerala," he said.
Sreedharan added the BJP has so far failed to serve all people in the State. "My stand is to unite people. At the same time, it is also not right to label BJP as a Hindutva Communal party. Such a tag has been established already. No one had invited me to join any party. K Surendran, after he became the state president of BJP, came and met me. He invited me to join the BJP and contest in the elections in the BJP ticket. I agreed when he came the second time," he said.
"I am not ready to be a full-fledged politician. But I will do good for the people. For me, politics is an opportunity for this. I have sought a constituency close to home to the party leadership while considering me as a candidate for the Assembly. It can be Thrissur, Palakkad or Malappuram, but not Kasaragod or Thiruvananthapuram," the metro-man disclosed his ideas about entering the election turf.
"Beyond winning the elections, I wish to do many other things like improving basic facilities. More industries should come up in Kerala. Hardly any industries have come up in Kerala in the last quarter-century. Legislations should be made to attract industries and businesses. Unnecessary agitations must be suppressed. Only the leaders benefit from trade unions," he said.
"I was associated with the RSS as a student. That was where I built a political foundation. All my values came through working with that organisation. BJP is RSS’s another version. Patriotism and worship towards the nation is the quality of BJP."
CPM and Congress belong to corrupt people. I can’t agree with such parties. I have not seen corruption in BJP. Sreedharan, who underlines that the BJP has not governed the State yet, insists corruption will be less even if he takes the helm.
"I had a good rapport with Oommen Chandy and I had trust in him. However, there was no bonding with Pinarayi Vijayan right from the beginning. My withdrawal from some of his pet projects was the reason that," he said.
"Pinarayi was vexed as I did not encourage the work of Thalassery-Mysore Rail Route. For this reason, he even halted the projects which were already on," he alleged. Further, he added that Pinarayi had tried to remove him and DMRC from the projects. "I have no respect for the present Government in Kerala. It is all a show. Pinarayi Vijayan has not been able to go deeper," he said.
Speaking about Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Sreedharan said he is is a great administrator. "It is not a fault that he has not faced the media after becoming the Prime Minister. Leaders come in front of the media to please the people. Modi does not need that," he said.
When asked about his stand on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) — a law central which recently Pinarayi said will not be implemented in Kerala — Sreedharan said it is necessary for National Security.
Sreedharan brushed aside the ongoing farmers' protest, calling it 'unnecessary'. "There are no farmers among the protestors at the protest venues. Corporate giants will not get any benefit fro these farm laws," he said.
E Sreedharan also said that the Sabarimala issue is going to be a headache for the government yet again.
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