JD(U) leader slams UDF

Hitting out at ruling UDF in
Kerala, JD(U) state president, M P Veerendra Kumar today said the party had not received due consideration from the Front and had 'sour experiences', but maintained it would continue to be coalition partner.
"We are still in UDF and will vote for Front candidates in the Rajya Sabha polls scheduled to be held on April 20," Veerendra Kumar told reporters after a high level meeting of the JD(U), the first after his erstwhile Socialist Janata (Democratic) merged with JD-U at the national level.
The state party had not discussed the issue of it joining the Left Democratic Front in the wake of merger of Janata parties at the national level, he said to a question.

"It is for the National Executive of the party to take a decision on the matter," said the JD(U) leader. The party has two MLAs in the Assembly, including K P Mohanan, the State Minister for Agriculture.
Criticising the attitude of UDF, he said the party helped the Front to win 16 out of 20 seats in the Lok Sabha polls last year and was instrumental in the victory of UDF candidates in Kozhikode, Vadakara, Wayanad, Thrissur, Thiruvananthapuram and Alappuzha.

"We are disappointed over the attitude of UDF. That's why such a disclosure is made at this juncture," he said.

"In UDF, JDU is not receiving the same attention even the RSP is getting. In Assembly elections, even Congress candidates were reluctant to contest the seats that were offered to us," he pointed out.
"When the party was with LDF, during panchayat polls, it gave us more seats than the UDF. But that doesn't mean that we are moving to LDF-fold. So far nobody has extended invitation to LDF. There is no logic in CPI-M state secretary Kodiyeri Balakrishna asking us to return to LDF after mending ways. JD(U) has no such tradition. Usually, parties won't rectify mistakes and return to fold, but analyses relevant topics," Veerendra Kumar said.

The JD(U) leader also condemned the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre, stating that the BJP and Sangh Parivar outfits were taking steps that could destabilise the country.