Congress to intensify agitation against AINRC government's failure to implement free rice schemes

Senior Congress leader and former Minister of State in PMO V Narayanasamy on Monday said the party would intensify agitation in the Union Territory to highlight the `failure' of the AINRC government in properly implementing the free rice scheme.

Addressing party workers, including some women, before they started locking some ration shops to protest against government's 'failure' to supply free rice to cardholders in Raj Bhavan constituency, he alleged that the government had let the down people without fulfilling its poll promises.

Rice under this scheme was available only in constituencies held by the ruling AINRC while the opposition held assembly segments were discriminated against. "If this trend continues unabated, congress will intensify its agitation in the UNion Territory and close all ration shops" he warned. 

Former Education Minister K Lakshminarayanan, representing Raj Bhavan constituency, led the agitation. Among those who addressed the agitators were former Chief Minister and leader of the opposition in the Assembly V Vaithilingam.