DMK is scared of BJP to raise its voice for TN's rights: LoP Palaniswami

CHENNAI: Sharpening his attack against the ruling party at the Centre and the state, Leader of Opposition and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami said that neither the Centre is releasing the due share of devolution fund to the state nor the Tamil Nadu government is raising its voice for the same.

This affects the lives of the people in the state. He pointed out that the centre did not release 8% of devolution funds to Tamil Nadu and ridiculed that the DMK government under MK Stalin is scared to demand for the righteous share of the state to tie down the financial constraints.

The Centre, as per the finance commission, should devolve 41% of the total taxes collected by the Centre to the state. However, the Centre released only 33.1% of the devolution fund to state in the fiscal year 2021-2022 and it did not release 8% for the state, Palaniswami said while addressing the gathering at the public meeting organised to mark the 107th birth anniversary of former CM M G Ramachandran at R K Nagar on Wednesday.

"What stops the DMK government and its Chief Minister Stalin from demanding the Centre to release the fund to tie down the financial constraints. He is scared to question the Centre?" Palaniswami questioned and also hit out at the Modi government for not releasing the fund for the state.

Continuing in the same vein, Palaniswami hit out at its former ally BJP and its government at the Centre over the fuel price, resulting in inflation and affecting the lives and livelihood of the common man.

After the BJP came to power, it doubled the fuel price (from Rs 52/litre of diesel and Rs 66/litre of petrol in 2014). It results in inflation and has an egregious impact on the lives of the common man as the price of the commodities that are ferried in good vehicles increase manifold due to the fuel price, he said.

When it imports crude oil from Russia for a lesser amount, what stops it from reducing the fuel price, he wondered and demanded the BJP government reduce Rs 15 per litre of diesel and petrol.

He charged that the CM went to Spain to sign MoU with an investor from Tamil Nadu and continued that it was not a tour to attract investment, but to invest the ill-gotten money through corruption, collection and commission.

On the INDIA bloc, in which the DMK was part of it, Palaniswami said that the allies in the block are abandoning it ever since Stalin proclaimed that it would form a government at the centre in post 2024 polls.

He also charged that the law and order deteriorated under the DMK regime and denounced that DMK government is curtailing the freedom of political opponents and denying them the rights to flag the issues faced by the people. He also cautioned DMK MP A Raja for allegedly speaking ill-about former CM M G Ramachandran and said that he should correct himself or else the cadres of the AIADMK would correct him.