The Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) leader Vijayakant has said he is maintaining a cordial relationship with the Communist Party of India (Marxist), but the question on alliance for the 2014 Lok Sabha polls would be decided at the time of elections.
“I have great respect for CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat and State secretary G. Ramakrishnan and I also take into consideration their suggestions. As of now, I am working on my own,” he told The-Hindu on Friday.
Mr. Vijayakant joined hands with the AIADMK in the 2011 Assembly elections as it was his objective to oust the DMK from power.
“But, the AIADMK will leave office, owing to its own actions,” he says.
Repudiating the suggestion that his party would always remain a third force in Tamil Nadu politics, Mr. Vijayakant expressed the hope that the strength of his party would be proved in the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and subsequently, it would capture power in 2016 Assembly elections.
Mr. Vijayakant, who has just completed a State-wide tour, also rejected the speculation that some of his party MLAs are unhappy with him and gravitating towards the ruling party.
“You must keep in mind that luring AIADMK MLAs and senior leaders such as S. Muthusamy, ‘Karur’ M. Chinnasamy, T.M. Selvaganapathy, Anita R. Radhakrishnan and P.K. Sekarbabu did not help the DMK in 2011,” Mr. Vijayakant said.
Mr. Vijayakant, who is the leader of the Opposition in the Assembly, says the government has targeted granite quarries for irregularities.
But, he says, it is beyond one’s comprehension why it has not yet carried out such an intense drive against illegal sand quarrying and thorium-rich sea sand quarrying in southern districts.
He wants the government to approach the issue of granite quarries in a comprehensive manner.
Making a strong case against Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in the retail sector, he says that the entry would deprive livelihood of lakhs of people who are already in the sector. “Instead of FDI in retail sector, what we need is technology transfer from other countries,” he points out.
He is also highly critical of the Congress-led UPA government, complaining that it has failed to secure justice for Tamil Nadu in inter-state rive disputes.
“The solution lies in nationalisation of rivers.”
He also wanted Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to visit Kudankulam and listen to local people and address their concern on the safety of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Project.
