Kottayam (Kerala) | Kerala Congress (Mani) chairman Jose K Mani on Friday invited Kerala Congress (Joseph) to join the LDF if the party was facing issues within the UDF.
Responding to reporters' queries on seat-sharing talks between Kerala Congress (Joseph) and other UDF allies, which are yet to reach a consensus, Mani said the LDF could offer "protection" to the party.
"You all know that both parties are of the same blood. Earlier, we had merged, but we had to experience hardship due to it. If they have issues there, we can provide protection here," he said.
Kerala Congress (Mani), led by K M Mani, and Kerala Congress (Joseph), headed by P J Joseph, had merged in 2010 but split after Mani died in 2020. Subsequently, Kerala Congress (Mani), which was part of the UDF, shifted its allegiance to the LDF.
Mani ruled out any further merger between the two parties. "We can offer protection, not a merger," he said.
He said Kerala Congress (Joseph) leaders might reject the offer.
"It is their decision. But they should be careful while remaining in the UDF," he said.
Mani claimed that Kerala Congress (Joseph) was facing internal issues within the UDF.
"I know they have problems there. I believe it is the same issue that arose following the earlier merger of the two parties," he said.
He also claimed that 96 per cent of the promises made in the LDF's election manifesto had been fulfilled.
Mani said he would participate in the LDF's statewide rally to highlight the government's development initiatives and to ensure its return to power.
He said the state government had done its best for farmers, particularly in addressing crop prices and human-animal conflict, but noted that several issues were linked to national policies and laws.
"Even if the state government raises the support price of rubber, the final decision rests with the Central government, which formulates policy. It needs to be examined whether policies are framed to support farmers or corporates," he said.
He said it would take only a minute for the Centre to raise rubber prices by increasing import duty.
"But the Centre is not ready to do so. In the last five years, the Central government has collected around Rs 7,000 crore as import duty. This amount represents the sweat of farmers, and even a small portion of it can be used to increase the rubber support price," he said.
Mani also said discussions on releasing the report of the J B Koshy Commission, appointed to study the educational, economic and welfare issues of Christian communities in Kerala, would be held soon.
