Welcoming the launch of a political party by Tamil actor Vijay, Lt. Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan said on Friday that it was a sign of a healthy democracy and also showed that one need not belong to any single family to become a political leader.
Interacting on the sidelines of an event at Pondicherry University, Ms. Soundararajan said Tamil Nadu required more leaders, especially those who were young and educated. “So, I welcome Vijay’s entry into politics. In fact, I would welcome more leaders to emerge.”
On the Vijay-founded Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam explicitly stating in its manifesto that it would stand for a brand of politics that was transparent, non-corrupt and did not divide people on lines of faith or caste, Ms. Soundararajan said such an intent was laudable. “No one is looking through the lens of religion and caste,” she said.
On Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin’s reported remarks that in presenting such a hollow Budget, the NDA betrayed its fear of electoral defeat in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, Ms. Soundararajan said if anyone should be fearful of facing the people, it had to be Mr. Stalin for the various problems that had erupted under his governance.
The Lt. Governor hailed the significant focus on women in the vote-on-account Union Budget presented by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on February 1.
The interim budget was a wholesome document that carried forward the good work across sectors and all sections of society the government had been undertaking over the past decade, she said.