Former Kerala Finance Minister K.N. Balagopal has said that the White Paper tabled in the Assembly has exposed the claims made by the Congress-led United Democratic Front (UDF) and V.D. Satheesan when they were in the Opposition.Talking to reporters in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday (June 4, 2026), Mr. Balagopal said that the Chief Minister, when he was the Leader of the Opposition, had persistently repeated that the State’s debt had touched ₹6 lakh crore. He had repeated it even after the then Left Democratic Front (LDF) government had stated that it would not exceed ₹4.8 lakh crore. The White Paper estimated Kerala’s outstanding liabilities at ₹5.07 lakh crore, debunking Mr. Satheesan’s claim, Mr. Balagopal said.On payment arrearsAt the time, Mr. Satheesan had also claimed that the LDF government owed more than ₹1 lakh crore to government employees. The White Paper revealed that the government's payment arrears stood at only ₹48,000 crore, he said.With regard to the privatisation proposals in the White Paper, Mr. Balagopal said that the critical aspect was whether the State’s interests could be protected in such an environment.Mr. Balagopal and Leader of the Opposition Pinarayi Vijayan said in the Assembly on Thursday morning that the White Paper should have been drafted by the State Finance department and not by an external panel. At the press conference, Mr. Balagopal reiterated the LDF's stance, drawing attention to the need for secrecy regarding critical fiscal data.Mr. Balagopal said the study should not stop with the White Paper. The Expert Committee led by K.M. Chandrasekhar should be tasked with studying the funding of the Indira Guarantees proposed by the UDF government and submit a further report. Regarding the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board (KIIFB), Mr. Balagopal drew attention to the committee’s description of the KIIFB as a bold institutional innovation. Published - June 04, 2026 08:14 pm IST