Kerala Assembly Elections 2026 | Shivakumar alleges lack of opportunities forcing Keralites to migrate, targets LDF

Thiruvananthapuram: Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Monday alleged that despite being highly educated, people in Kerala are forced to seek jobs in other states and countries due to lack of opportunities.

The Congress leader is in the state as part of the campaign for the April 9 Assembly polls.

Addressing a press conference here, Shivakumar said Kerala has highly educated, intelligent and hardworking people, but lacks adequate employment opportunities.

He alleged that the state has a high unemployment rate.

“Youngsters are leaving for places like Saudi Arabia, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi. Around 20 per cent of engineers working in Karnataka are Keralites,” he said.

Shivakumar also accused the Left government led by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan of "failing" to bring in policies that attract investment.

“The Chief Minister must answer what investments have been brought to Kerala,” he said.

He said Kerala’s investment policies are not investor-friendly, while Karnataka attracts investors due to its liberal approach.

He also questioned the lack of major investments in the state despite its high ranking in the ease of doing business index.

“The communist mindset has to go and liberalisation has to come in to attract investors,” he said.

He alleged that there is a nexus between the LDF and the BJP in the elections, but expressed confidence that the UDF would come to power with a two-thirds majority.

He said the UDF would provide a corruption-free and transparent government that would bring systemic changes, attract investment and generate employment.