People should help to defeat the “fascist” BJP government at the Centre so that fuel prices were brought down, DMK leader M.K .Stalin said.
Addressing ‘Ungal Thoguthiyil Stalin’ programme at Pattampudur near here on Sunday, he said though international price of crude oil soared during the United Progressive Alliance government, the Centre then had not increased the prices of petrol and cooking gas to the present level. Now international price of crude oil had come down drastically, but the Centre had increased fuel prices manifold by reducing subsidy and imposing several tax.
“I appeal to the people not only to help a change of guard during the Assembly election, but also to send home BJP-led government at the Centre. He was responding to a question raised by one Basheer Ahmed of Virudhunagar, who complained about the problems he was facing due to petrol price hike.
Mr. Stalin accused the AIADMK government of hurriedly floating “last minute” tenders to swindle public money. Since November 2020, tenders to the tune of ₹2,855 crore had been floated by the PWD, which is under the Chief Minister’s portfolio, he said.
When people sought various works and MLAs demanded some beneficial works, the CM was hesitant to implement them in the past. But, now he had been on a spree of announcing new schemes.
Pointing out that Tamil Nadu had a debt of ₹5 lakh crore, he said this government was trying to loot the borrowed money. They want to wipe off the State’s coffers. The government had claimed that it had no funds to provide old age pension, wages for MGNREGS workers and to provide pensionary benefits to government employees. Similarly, it had had no funds to provide interim relief to the people affected by COVID-19 and Cyclone Nivar, but now it had so much of funds to allocate for tenders.
“This means this government is not for the people, but for tenders. After the DMK assumes office, the last minute tenders in each department would be taken up for scrutiny and those tenders floated for commission would be cancelled,” he said.
Making caustic remarks against Dairy Development Minister K.T. Rajenthra Bhalaji, he said the Minister was used to making abusing comments. Stating that a disproportionate assets case was pending against him in the High Court, he said the DVAC Superintendent of Police had submitted a report in the case.
