Despite having close connections with the Karnataka Government and visits for Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance (INDIA) bloc meeting in Bengaluru, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K.Stalin could not get the State’s Cauvery water share, charged AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in Mayiladuthurai on Sunday.
Canvassing votes for P Babu, the AIADMK’s Mayiladuthurai Lok Sabha constituency candidate, Mr Palaniswami said, “It was the AIADMK government that stopped hydrocarbon extraction and other projects brought by the DMK, that threatened the livelihood of the Delta region and its farmers. Unlike Mr. Stalin, who hails from a rich background, I am a farmer myself and I know the plight of farmers.”
Pointing to the lack of adequate water for irrigation in the kuruavai season, Mr. Palaniswami said, “Mr. Stalin could not get us the due Cauvery water from Karnataka as ordered by the Supreme Court of India. This led to a severe crop failure this year and farmers are left with nothing. Even the due relief was not given to them.”
According to him, “Mr. Stalin, being a puppet Chief Minister, could not play any role in stopping the proposals for Mekedatu dam, and if the project got approved by the Centre, our Delta would be a desert land.”
Comparing the Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and Mr. Stalin, Mr. Palaniswami said Kejriwal stood his ground with the INDIA bloc by making the Congress endorse policies pertaining to his State, but Mr. Stalin could not.
Commenting on the Government-Governor stand-off, Mr. Palaniswami criticised the DMK for saying the post of Governor itself was irrelevant. “When the DMK shared power in the UPA government at the Centre, they had no issue with the concept of Governor. Why did they not curtail the Governor’s power back then? They did not do so as they had favourable Governor at that time. Their opposition now is because the incumbent Governor picks on their corruption,” he claimed.
Criticising communist parties, Mr. Palaniswami pointed to their alliance with Congress here and their opposition to the same party in Kerala and said, “Do they have any ideology left with them? All they are doing is cheating people.”
Hitting out at the BJP, he said, “Earlier, we were in alliance with them. It was due to coalition ethics we remained silent. Now that we have come out of it, we will oppose them tooth and nail if they betray the people of Tamil Nadu.”
In Tiruvarur, while campaigning for the AIADMK’s Nagapattinam Parliamentary constituency candidate G. Surjith Shankar, Mr. Palaniswami said DMK had no respect for its alliance parties and did not want them to flourish.
“The sole aim of having an alliance with the MDMK is to destroy it completely. Durai Vaiko being a key leader of MDMK was asked to contest in DMK’s symbol in Tiruchi seat. It implies he should resign from his party and join DMK. In a cadres’ meet, they made Mr. Durai Voiko cry because of this as he could not withstand their pressure. How can they treat their alliance party in this way?” he asked.
