The Opposition AIADMK has charged Chief Minister V. Narayanasamy with adopting double standards in the implementation of the free rice scheme.
Talking to mediapersons on Friday, AIADMK Legislature party leader A. Anbalagan said that the Chief Minister had unsuccessfully approached the Madras High Court to insist that the government be permitted to distribute rice to cardholders in the Union Territory instead of the cash equivalent.
With the Madras High Court dismissing the writ petition of the Chief Minister, he has now been instigating the DMK and Left parties to stage protests demanding distribution of rice instead of cash.
The Direct Benefit Transfer (DBT) system of implementation was only introduced by the previous Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government and the then Union Home Minister P. Chidambaram had launched the scheme in Puducherry. “But now Mr. Narayanasamy is urging for distribution of rice in lieu of cash. How can a Congress Chief Minister question a scheme formulated by the UPA?” he asked.
Mr. Anbalagan pointed out that the government should have operated the scheme practically, but because of the tussle the Chief Minister was having with the Lt. Governor Kiran Bedi, the scheme suffered several interruptions.
The government had distributed rice only for 23 months out of the last 45 months. Though funds to the tune of ₹356 crore had been allocated in the budget, it had been diverted for other schemes.
The AIADMK would launch a major agitation if the cash equivalent of rice was not credited to the bank accounts of beneficiaries in a month’s time. The Left parties are also playing second fiddle to the Chief Minister although they could concentrate on various issues concerning the people, he added.
