Thiruvananthapuram, Jul 10 (IANS): Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan on Saturday broke his silence on the Kitex controversy after leading industrialist Sabu Jacob, who heads Kitex, visited Telangana to discuss with the government there on moving his proposed investment to the state after getting a raw deal in Kerala.

Vijayan said all what is now being heard in the state about the industrial scenario was something that was heard often here in earlier years and but such a situation no longer exists.

"This issue being raised now against Kerala is nothing but an attempt to shame our state and should be seen as something done with intent," said Vijayan.

Vijayan did not say a word about Kitex or name Jacob, instead he touched upon the rankings that the Niti Aayog had come out recently which ranked Kerala as the first in the country when it comes to investment friendly destinations.

"Another report from Niti Aayog rates Kerala second in ranking when it came to the business climate and presence of human resources and fourth in investment climate. Likewise the National Council of Economic Research in its 2018 report ranked Kerala as fourth in the country after taking into consideration factors like land, labour political stability and business awareness," said Vijayan.

Jacob just before flying out in a private jet sent by the Telangana government on Friday told the media that he was "kicked out" of Kerala and he had no other option but to look elsewhere as nine states had invited him.

Jacob has committed to invest Rs 1,000 crore to set up an apparel manufacturing unit in the Kakatiya Mega Textiles Park (KMTP) at Warangal in Telangana after a few rounds of discussions with Telangana Industry Minister K.T. Rama Rao and senior officials.

Vijayan also added that all have to abide by the rules and laws and it's only natural for authorities to examine when a complaint arises and his government is not one which will target any business.