AIADMK slams Stalin's Dubai visit as a 'family picnic'

AIADMK top leader K Palaniswami on Sunday hit out at Chief Minister M K Stalin alleging that in the eyes of the people his Dubai visit was only a 'family picnic'.

Palaniswami said that when Stalin was leader of the opposition, he had mocked at him and his cabinet as ''AIADMK picnic cabinet,'' as he had taken 3 of his ministers and government officials during his official visits abroad. However, Stalin's entire family has now gone along with him to Dubai, the leader of opposition said. If Stalin had taken only secretaries of departments and ministers, it would have been appropriate, he told reporters here.

The AIADMK joint coordinator claimed that in the eyes of the people, the Chief Minister's Dubai visit was only a 'family picnic.' On Stalin inaugurating the Tamil Nadu pavilion on Friday at the Dubai Expo 2022, Palaniswami said that it was amusing since the event, which began on October 1 last year is set to conclude on March 31. The event is a 'pretext' to visit Dubai, he said.

Palaniswami hit out at Stalin, saying his foreign visit was not for attracting investments to the state or for Tamil Nadu people's welfare. The AIADMK leader alleged: ''People talk that it is for their personal reasons and it is the people who ask whether he has gone there to bring or make investments.''

Palaniswami listed investments secured following his visits abroad when he was the Chief Minister and said such initiatives had led to transformation of Tamil Nadu into a 'EV (Electric Vehicles) hub'. The former Chief Minister mocked at the DMK government as only engaged in putting up 'stickers' to projects/ initiatives facilitated during the AIADMK regime. On March 24, Stalin left for Dubai from here and he is scheduled to return on March 29.

The DMK had on Saturday demanded Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai to tender an unconditional public apology to Stalin immediately and also pay Rs 100 crore as damages to the Chief Minister's relief fund for allegedly making ''false, frivolous, vile and scandalous'' remarks against the Chief Minister in connection with his Dubai visit.