Kerala elections: Venugopal writes to CM Vijayan, claims ‘deal’ with BJP; questions ‘breakfast meeting’ with Sitharaman

New Delhi: Congress leader KC Venugopal on Tuesday wrote an open letter to the Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayanasked “10 questions” about what he called a secret understanding between the ruling left and the ruling party bjp.In his letter, Venugopal said the issues reflected widespread local discussions and asked Vijayan to respond.“As Kerala once again stands on the threshold of elections, many questions remain about the legacy of your decade-long rule,” Venugopal said.A highlight of the letter is Vijayan’s meeting with senior BJP leaders. Venugopal asked: “What was the agenda (excluding officials) of your meeting with Union Home Minister Amit Shah at his residence in Delhi? Was the ‘agreement’ reached there?”He raised similar questions during his breakfast meeting with Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and his interaction with Union Minister Nitin Gadkari in the Kerala House, asking whether the meetings were part of an “understanding” with the BJP.Congress leaders have questioned the state government’s move to implement the Prime Minister’s SHRI scheme despite opposition from Communist Party of India (CPI) leaders within the Left Democratic Front (LDF). “What’s the ‘deal’ behind this? Whose interests are you protecting… while keeping your own coalition partners in the dark?” he asked.Venugopal also claimed that decisions related to labor laws were taken in “extreme secrecy” without consulting allies, and pointed to the increase in union registration fees, asking who the move was to “satisfy”.The letter also mentions ongoing and past cases. Regarding the SNC-Lavalin case, Venugopal challenged the multiple adjournments of the Supreme Court, asking whether it was related to the “deal” with the Centre. He also cited the Exalogic Solutions case and the gold and dollar smuggling cases, questioning why the investigation was “stalled midway” and whether there was any intervention.He further raised the issue of senior police officer Mr Ajith Kumar and his alleged contacts with the RSS leader and mentioned an alleged meeting between Vijayan and the BJP leader at a hotel where he asked the chief minister if he would reveal the details.The letter comes amid a tight contest between the CPI(M)-led LDF and the Congress-led UDF for the 140 seats in the Kerala Assembly. The state is expected to vote in 2026.