LDF leaders to meet President on coke issue

Tuesday, July 26, 2011: LDF Opposition in Kerala will submit a memorandum to President Pratibha Patil, seeking early clearance for the bill passed by the Assembly to set up a special tribunal to get compensation from Coca Cola for alleged losses caused by its plant in Palakkad district.

The LDF liaison committee which met here today passed a resolution asking the President to give assent to the bill passed by the assembly in February 2011 when LDF was in power. Speaking to reporters here, Front Convener Vaikom Viswam alleged there was a move to sabotage the legislation passed unanimously by the assembly. “Some lobby is working against setting up the tribunal’, he said.

A high-power committee set up by the previous government had quantified the loss caused by the plant of Hindustan Coca Cola Beverages Private Ltd at Rs 216 crore. Viswam said the bill was passed to compensate loss suffered by the people due to functioning of the plant (at Plachimada).

The meeting flayed the UPA government’s decision to cut levy on import of rubber and decided to took out a march of rubber growers to the Rubber Board office at Kottayam. Viswam said the budget proposal to allow five per cent of plantations for other purposes was clearly an attempt to infringe into the Land Reforms Act. “LDF would resist any move to dilute provisions in land reforms initiated by the Communist government,” he said.