Chennai Metro Rail funding row: If State project, why Amit Shah laid foundation, asks Wilson

CHENNAI: Hitting back at the BJP-led NDA for disowning the Chennai Metro Rail phase-II, DMK Rajya Sabha member P Wilson on Saturday wondered why Union Home Minister Amit Shah laid the foundation stone for the project in November 2020 if it were a highly cost-intensive project.

The senior advocate’s comments come in the backdrop of the Centre terming it a state sector project.

Posting on his ‘X’ page a reply received from the Union finance ministry to the queries raised by him in the Rajya Sabha regarding the allocation of funds for pending public projects in Tamil Nadu, Wilson said, “If the minister claims that CMRL-2 is a highly cost-intensive, why did Amit Shah lay the foundation stone?”

In his September 17 reply, Pankaj Chaudhary, Union Minister of State for finance reiterated that approval for CMRL phase-II would depend on the feasibility of the project and availability of financial resources. The union minister also informed that the Tamil Nadu government has submitted the DPR of only the Coimbatore and Madurai Metro projects without a Comprehensive Mobility Plan and Alternative Analysis report.

Not content with the replies, Wilson tagged union minister Nirmala Sitaraman on his post and said, “Where there is a will, there is a way. Finance minister Nirmala Sitaraman, Tamil Nadu is neglected, discriminated against, and not given fair treatment in the devolution of funds which is unconstitutional.”