TN already a Punniya Bhoomi, don’t destroy it, CM tells Modi

TIRUCHY: Tamil Nadu is already a Punniya Bhoomi(holy land) with people maintaining unity and brotherhood and BJP’s attempts to create unrest in the name of caste and religion will not thrive here as long as DMK exists, said DMK president and Chief Minister MK Stalin in Salem on Saturday.

Campaigning for DMK candidates TM Selvaganapathy (Salem) and Malaiarasan (Kallakurichi), Stalin, referring to PM Modi’s recent address in which he noted that Tamil Nadu would be transformed into a holy land, said the PM who had wished to change the State into a holy land had not paid a visit to the flood-hit Tamil Nadu and failed to release a single paise as relief fund.

“Not only in this election, even after 100 such elections, your (BJP’s) theatrics will not work in Tamil Nadu, as it is the land of Periyar and built by Anna and developed by Kalaignar,” Stalin said.

Stating that the concept of the Dravidian Model is not only heard in the south but also the north, Stalin said: Tamil Nadu government has set an example of good governance among the states in the country and the Union government is an example of a country that should not be, he said.

‘BJP can’t enter South, will lose hold on North’

“Until the elections were announced, there was a report that the BJP cannot enter the Southern states by any means and after the announcement of elections, there is a sign that the BJP cannot withstand in northern states, too, and so the Prime Minister had lost his sleep”, Stalin said.

He said that the BJP had been trying in every aspect to form government by destroying the sacrifices of great leaders and so the entire nation is against their fascist attitude and so several BJP leaders including the finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman have been staying away from contesting in the polls. “Since they could not get candidates to field, they opted for a Governor and sitting MLAs to contest in the elections and this shows that the BJP is fearful of securing fewer votes than the NOTA”, he said.

Stalin asked the PM whether there was any safety for the women in the BJP-ruled states. He listed out a few incidents including sexual harassment to women wrestlers, and women in Manipur and the sexual torture of a young woman in UP by the BJP MLA Kuldeep Singh and his brother. “How can you talk about women’s power?”, Stalin asked.

Stalin said that there are several history-sheeters in the BJP. Among them, as many as 261 anti-social elements were involved in 1,977 cases. “With all this, you talk about the Law and Order of the state?”, Stalin questioned.