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The American regional meeting of the Loka Kerala Sabha (LKS), a common platform of Keralites living across the world, scheduled to be held in New York next week, has run into a political controversy over soliciting sponsorship for the event.
Both state opposition parties, the Congress and the BJP, have flayed the Kerala government for seeking money to dine and share the dais with Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of the CPI(M) at the meeting. The Congress has additionally mocked the Communist government for its graded sponsorship policy, by which expat attendees can buy visibility and access by paying more money, saying it amounts to differentiation on the basis of economic class, and that it pushes a narrative around Vijayan’s personality.
The LKS, comprising mainly prominent non-resident Keralite business persons and professionals, as well as MPs and MLAs from the state, was formed by the previous Pinarayi Vijayan government. Three LKS conclaves have so far been hosted by the state government, all in the state capital Thiruvananthapuram, with the third and last one in June 2022. Organised by the Department of Non-Resident Keralites Affairs (NORKA) in the State Assembly Complex, these were attended by 182 delegates from across the world and India. They participated in various sessions depending on their country of residence, and debated various issues affecting Kerala’s expatriates and how they could chip in to boost the state’s economy.
It was then decided to conduct regional conferences in selected countries. An European and UK regional conference was held in October last year.
The latest regional conference of the LKS, to be held in Manhattan from June 9 to June 11, has got embroiled in a controversy over a policy of graded access for individual sponsors of the event, based on the amount they donate — a practice and policy similar to fundraisers by US political parties.
The sponsors have been divided into gold, silver and bronze categories. For an expatriate who buys a gold sponsorship with a price tag of $100k, the offer includes dinner with VIPs from Kerala, stage recognition, reserved seats for all functions at the conference, prime seating at the banquet table, and prominent display of names of the individual or business on ‘video walls’ placed strategically at Times Square and inside the venue, the Marriott Marquis Hotel.
There are similar offers for the silver and bronze sponsors, who are willing to donate lesser amounts for the event.
While the brochure for soliciting sponsorships from US-based NRKs doesn’t mention the names of the VIPs expected, it would undeniably include CM Pinarayi Vijayan, who would also be addressing a public meeting at Times Square as part of a Kerala government show. Although the Kerala delegation includes minister K N Balagopal and Assembly Speaker A N Shamseer, only Vijayan would address the meeting at Times Square.
Reacting sharply to the programme, the Congress pointed out that such gold, silver or bronze passes were not required to meet or speak to former CM and party veteran Oommen Chandy. Describing the graded passes as “Vijayan’s megalomania”, state Youth Congress vice-president K S Sabarinadhan shared an old photo of Chandy dining with ordinary party workers, without mentioning the incident or location.
Congress state president K Sudhakaran said, “The LKS has been reduced to gimmicks of a few rich NRKs out of their devotion towards Vijayan. He should explain how expatriates would benefit from the LKS. It has become a programme for enhancing Vijayan’s status.”
Opposition leader V D Satheesan said the CPI(M)-led Left Front government is categorising expatriates based on their financial status. “Should an expatriate pay Rs 82 lakh to share a dais with Vijayan in the USA? Communist CM Vijayan is telling the world the difference between haves and have nots. It gives the message that only a person who can cough up USD 1 lakh can sit with Vijayan. Others should wait outside the gate,” he said.
On Friday, BJP state president K Surendran said Vijayan should desist from illegally collecting funds from expatriates under the guise of the LKS. “If one person has to share a dais with the CM, he has to pay Rs 82 lakh. It is an insult to pravasis, and amounts to usury of the hard-earned money of the expatriates. Vijayan welcomes only the rich, while the poor are shown the door. It would be the first time in the world that a government collects money for even dining with a CM.”
CPI(M) central committee member A K Balan justified the sponsorship. “Why should they (Congress) be so jealous about it? The government has got wholehearted support from the pravasis. The idea of the LKS came from Vijayan. There will be an audit with regards to the expenditure of funds collected for the meeting. The Opposition isn’t allowing the government to spend from the state budget for the event, nor to raise the required amount abroad. This is a dog-in-the-manger attitude,” he said.
The Congress-led Opposition had boycotted all previous editions of the LKS, saying it was a futile exercise at the cost of the state exchequer. Besides, the suggestions that emerged from the sessions of LKS had never been implemented in the past, they said.
