Janmabhumi, the mouthpiece of Kerala unit of the BJP, has ticked off Union Minister of State for Tourism KJ Alphons for his ‘unbecoming conduct’ in the aftermath of the devastating floods in the State.
Kerala’s sole representative in the Union Cabinet, Alphonse, has been faulted as much for speaking out of turn on the desirability of accepting a ‘non-existent offer’ of foreign aid for the State as for his social media ‘stunt’ to attract cheap popularity.
Foreign aid speak
When Prime Minister Modi travelled to Kerala to take stock of the damage caused by the floods, Alphons was at the airport with the Governor and Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan to receive him.
In the first case of digression, the minister had urged the Centre ‘make an exception’ for Kerala after it refused to accept ₹700 crore in relief offered by the UAE. The floods have displaced more than a million people in the State and killed over 400.
Alphons’ statement came after the Centre clarified that it was against India’s policy to accept foreign aid in such cases. The country has refused offers of financial assistance from foreign governments since the 2004 tsunami.
The minister argued that this 14-year convention was ‘inherited’ from the previous dispensations.
Trollers’ delight
The second instance where Alphons seem to have rubbed the leadership on the wrong side was when he tweeted a picture of himself sleeping on floor in a relief camp in the State.
“I slept at a relief camp last night in Changanacherry. Most people didn’t sleep thinking of a uncertain tomo,” he tweeted, and tagged @narendramodi @AmitShah @BJP4India @BJP4Keralam @PiyushGoyal @dpradhanbjp for good measure.
A trollers’ delight even in normal times, Alphons was targeted by those who were just waiting on the sidelines for his occasional slip-ups. “Sir, it’s not an opportunity for publicity,” one Twitter user wrote.
“Is this a joke? You don’t need to do such show offs [sic]. The people of Kerala can clearly recognise this kind of political gimmick. In fact, being a central minister, you are able to help Kerala in this dire situation. Please do that,” advised another.
Alphons sought to take cover tweeting later that it was not him, but an ‘overzealous member of his personal staff’ who had shot him literally napping, and had tweeted it without his knowledge.