CM’s family acting as power centres in ruling T.N., says EPS

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Friday accused Chief Minister MK Stalin and his family members of acting as powerhouses to rule the State since DMK came to power in 2021.

He addressed the public during the meeting Makkalai Kaappom, Thamizhagathai Meetpom During the campaign to introduce candidates of the AIADMK alliance for Assembly segments in Tirupattur, Vellore and Ranipet districts, Mr. Palaniswami said that the State was ruled by the Chief Minister’s family. He said Mr. Stalin’s wife Durga Stalin, his son and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and son-in-law V. Sabareesan acted as the four centers of power of the DMK and controlled various government departments and institutions. “Mr. Stalin remains a mere puppet of these power centres. The rights and dignity of the people of Tamil Nadu can be restored only if the AIADMK comes to power again,” he said.

The AIADMK leader slammed Mr Stalin for criticizing the AIADMK’s failure to win elections since 2017 under his leadership. “Mr. Stalin should stop speaking in an arrogant manner. Otherwise, AIADMK party cadre will respond appropriately. He should remember the past when DMK could not even secure a position as the main Opposition party in the 2011 Assembly polls. Since then DMK was in ‘vanavasam’ (political exile) till 2021,” he said.

Obtaining credit for implementation Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam Mr. Palaniswami said this was implemented by the DMK government due to constant pressure from the AIADMK. The DMK government led by Mr Stalin bowed to pressure from the main opposition party in the State Assembly, AIADMK, and implemented the plan after 28 months since the DMK came to power in May 2021. “Given the assembly elections, another 25 lakh beneficiaries were recently enrolled in the scheme. If these beneficiaries had been added when the scheme was implemented, they would not have lost the monthly grant of ₹ 1,000 for 54 months.” he said.

He also lamented the dependence of the Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) partners, especially the CPI, CPI(M) and VCK, on ​​the DMK. He said that despite being in the alliance for over a decade, they had to contest fewer seats than their allotted seats in the 2021 polls due to the new entrant DMDK.

“According to records, DMDK led by Vijayakant managed to get only 0.5 per cent of the total votes in the 2021 elections, while communist parties got around 2.5 per cent of the total votes in the same elections. Despite the vote percentage, the alliance partners had to reduce the number of Assembly seats they demanded for the polls. Front alliance partners led by DMK should be ashamed to be in such an alliance for the polls,” he said.

The AIADMK leader asserted that the party has always protected the rights of minorities in the state. “For the AIADMK, the alliance is different from the party’s principles. Despite our alliance for the elections, the AIADMK principles regarding the protection of minorities in Tamil Nadu will never change,” he said.