Protest against Lakshadweep Administration . Opposition demands recall of Praful Patel

Opposition parties have approached President Ram Nath Kovind against the Administrator of Lakshadweep and senior BJP leader Praful Patel accusing him of destroying local livelihood and mishandling Covid control.

NCP leader and Lakshadweep MP Faizal Mohammed has demanded that Patel should be recalled. “Patel is trying to destroy the livelihood of people in the islands. Sheds for keeping fishing equipments are being destroyed in the name of protecting coasts. He has asked the administration to shut the dairy farms. He changed the quarantine rules which resulted in spread of Covid 19 cases in the islands,” he chartged.

The Opposition parties, including the Congress, Left and the NCP, claim that Patel’s actions are autocratic and it has also resulted in spreading Covid in the Union Territory.

‘Anti-people policies’

CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP Elamaram Kareem urged President Kovind to urgently call back the Administrator whose “anti-people policies” led to widespread protest among the people.

“All of the regulations were promulgated without an iota of consideration for the people or their choice of food and livelihood. The undemocratic and anti-people regulation in the name of ‘Animal Preservation’ which intends to ban slaughter, transportation, selling or buying of beef products is one among such orders. This is a blatant onslaught on the people who depend on dairying and growing of cattle as a means of livelihood,” Kareem said.

Beypore port

Kareem said the administration has also decided that the islanders should no longer use Kerala’s Beypore port for freight transit. “Instead, they should depend on Mangaluru port. Allegedly, the decision is aimed at severing Lakshadweep’s ties with Kerala,” he claimed.

Congress president of Lakshadweep Block CP Abbas claimed the new regulations are for helping big corporations to enter Lakshadweep and build their resorts and guest houses. He said in the name of tourism, the administration has decided to open up bars. “Development model based forced acquisition of land from the native inhabitant scheduled tribes cannot be implemented to provide land to corporate bodies and real estate mafia. Any development model relying on land acquisition cannot be adopted for a tiny ecologically sensitive coral reef islands.,” he said. Abbas said, to suppress agitations, Patel is depending on Goondas Act. “Patel is trying to muzzle the voices of Opposition,” he said.

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