The AIADMK on Tuesday lashed out at the BJP, mocking the party State unit leaders’ recent announcements that it would not align with the Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK.
The response follows recent media reports quoting BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan as having said the party opposed the AIADMK and would not forge an alliance with it, but would position itself as an alternative force in Tamil Nadu. Last week, BJP leader and Union Power Minister Piyush Goyal charged Tamil Nadu’s ruling party with rank corruption.
AIADMK’s strongly-worded response – published in the party’s media organ ‘Dr. Namadhu MGR’ – challenged the BJP to implement prohibition across the country, accusing it of being unable to do it in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, where the party is in power.
Explaining the party’s position, Rajya Sabha MP and AIADMK spokesperson A. W. Rabi Bernard told The Hindu that their leader Jayalalithaa always maintained that the party would stand on its own feet. “Our interest is in Tamil Nadu unlike national parties like the Congress and BJP, whose involvement in a State tends to be sporadic, depending on which State their prominent leaders at that time come from,” he said.
Emphasising that the AIADMK was committed to safeguarding Tamil Nadu’s interest, Mr. Bernard said: “We have our cadre, Amma ’s charisma and the government’s achievements. We do not need any alliance. We will never compromise on our principles to be part of one.”
The developments come at a time when the BJP is trying to build its strength in Tamil Nadu with nearly 32 lakh members at present. Deeming the BJP leaders’ comments premature, he asked: “Why are they commenting on alliance now when elections are 12 months away?”
Responding to the column in AIADMK’s mouthpiece, BJP State vice president, Vanathi Srinivasan, said: “Is the government even functional now? Why is there a policy paralysis? Why is the Metro Rail in Chennai not running? These are the questions we are posing before the people,” she said. The recent arrest of a former Minister clearly proved that the government was riddled with corruption, she added.
