The Kitex Group Chairman, Sabu Jacob, issued a statement on Tuesday citing difficulties in running the industrial unit in the state due to “harassment and raids by officials from various departments.”
Amid the controversy over the Kitex Garments’ announcement to withdraw from Kerala and the Tamil Nadu government’s invitation to set up a factory, business tycoon, and a renowned NRI Yusaffali M. A. requested Kitex management to stay put in Kerala.
The garment company is calling the move a “forced withdrawal from Rs 3,500 crore project due to constant government interventions and harassment.”
“I wish Kitex doesn’t go from Kerala. Any big or small investment should not go away from the state. Both government and private players have the responsibility to create job opportunities for the youths of Kerala. So my request to Kitex is not to go out of Kerala. It is in the interest of both to resolve the issue through talks,” said Yusaffali to Asianet News.
The Kitex Group Chairman, Sabu Jacob, issued a statement on Tuesday citing difficulties in running the industrial unit in the state due to “harassment and raids by officials from various departments.”
The garment company is calling the withdrawal from Rs 3,500 crore project due to constant government interventions and harassment.
Soon after Jacob’s statement, the Tamil Nadu government extended an invitation to Kitex to invest in TN.
Jacob claimed to have offers from 10 Indian states to set up factory and invest.
“Sabu Jacob said on Saturday July 3 that almost 10 state governments have approached the company.
The problem said to have started with the formation of a political party ‘Twenty20’ by the Kitex chairman. The party in December last year won several seats in the local body polls.
A pro-investment businessman from Kerala, however, said it was high time for a state like Kerala to think in terms of investment following falling oil prices and the number of jobs shrinking in GCC countries.
“Kerala has its old problem. Industries are victims of political interferences. It needs to come out of this stigma because its own people have the potential to invest. They don’t invest due to political factors,” he said.
