ASEAN pact will adversely affect Kerala: Pinarayi

CPI(M) state secretary Pinarayi Vijayan today lambasted the UPA government over the ASEAN Free Trade Agreement, saying it would adversely affect the agriculture and fisheries sectors in Kerala and alleged that Congress leaders in the state had 'misled' the people on it.

"Congress leaders in Kerala have misled the people with false propaganda that the ASEAN nations have recognised the negative list when neither prime minister Manmohan Singh or commerce minister Anand Sharma had said anything to the effect," he said at a meet-the-press programme here.

Vijayan alleged that those who had backed the UDF in the recent Lok Sabha polls had realised that UPA government at the Centre had 'betrayed' them with several anti-people policies such as privatisation of public sector units.

He denied that guidelines issued to heads of various government departments on releasing news amounted to censorship and said there need not be any fear in this regard.

"This will only enable all the media to get the news", he said.

On the delay in the Kochi Metrorail project, Vijayan alleged that it was due to political reasons. The state government, on its part, has done all that is expected of it. "The Centre must take a favourable step with regard to the project", he said.