Free Covid-19 vaccine announcement not a violation of election code: Kerala CM

@the_news_21

Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Monday dismissed the Opposition’s allegations levelled at him and said that his announcement about providing free Covid-19 vaccine was not a breach of election code as the announcement was made as part of the state’s ongoing Covid-19 treatment programme.

He was responding to the charge by the UDF and the BJP which moved the State Election Commission (SEC) on Sunday a day ahead of final phase of local body polls in Kerala, contending that the chief minister’s promise of providing the vaccine free of cost, violated the EC’s model code of conduct.

After casting his vote in Kannur district, Vijayan asserted that the Left front was going to achieve an “iconic victory” in the local body polls, seen as a curtain raiser ahead of the state Assembly elections due in April-May 2021.

“We have been providing free treatment for Covid-19 and the preventive medicine is part of that treatment. We made it clear that it will be provided free of cost. There is no violation of any model code of conduct,” the chief minister told reporters.

Vijayan claimed the Congress-led UDF will face a major backlash in the civic polls and IUML, the second major partner of the Opposition combine, would lose its base in the state.

The ruling CPI(M)-led LDF had on Sunday dismissed the Opposition’s charge as “childish” and had said that Vijayan was only answering a question from reporters and also that the party’s manifesto included the free vaccine assurance.

Vijayan had on Saturday said Covid-19 vaccine will be made available free of cost to all people in Kerala. “No one will be charged for the vaccine. This is the stand of the government,” he had said.

Elections to the local bodies in the state are being held in three phases with voting underway in four northern districts on Monday as part of the final phase. The first and second phases were held on December 8 and 10 respectively. Counting of votes will take place on December 16.

The Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) convener M M Hassan had said that the front moved the SEC as the chief minister’s announcement was a violation of the model code in view of the local body elections.

Union Minister of State and BJP leader V Muraleedharan had claimed that desperation was “driving the Communists in Kerala”, adding the announcement undermined the sanctity of the election process.

Five vaccine candidates are under different phases of clinical trials in the country and the Centre has said that there is hope of an early licence being issued for one or more with three of them being under the active consideration of the drug regulator.