VILLUPURAM: Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) leader Anbumani Ramadoss said he has been meeting people across Tamil Nadu with the sole objective of removing the ruling DMK government.
Speaking at a public awareness meeting organised by the PMK as part of the Rights Retrieval Awareness Padayatra in Vikravandi, Villupuram district, on Wednesday, Anbumani said the campaign was not aimed at securing votes but at restoring the rights of the Vanniyar community, which has been continuously neglected and deceived in reservation matters.
“Villupuram is a land of sacrifice. In the 1987 reservation protest for Vanniyars, eight people from the Vikravandi area lost their lives. This place has a history of fighting for social justice,” he said.
He alleged that the DMK government works against Scheduled Castes and minorities.
“In the past, people gave continuous victories to DMK, but all they got in return was disappointment,” he said.
Anbumani claimed that the free sale of drugs in Tamil Nadu has made it unsafe for women to walk freely and that no one, from children to the elderly, feels secure. He said farmers are dissatisfied and sanitation workers, who keep the country clean, are protesting in Chennai.
Recalling the 2019 Vikravandi by-election campaign, he said, “The Chief Minister had promised to provide 15% reservation for Vanniyars, but it has not been implemented. Eighteen percent of Tamil Nadu’s population are Vanniyars. If they progress, Tamil Nadu will progress.”
He added that even after the Supreme Court ordered collection of data and fair allocation of reservation, Chief Minister MK Stalin did not implement it. “There is no legal compulsion to conduct a caste census to provide reservation,” he said.
He accused the DMK of betraying Vanniyars and Scheduled Castes since 1962 and 1967, when the Vanniyar-dominated northern districts had helped the party win many constituencies.
“While Karnataka has conducted a caste census to ensure social justice, there is no social justice in Tamil Nadu. The Backward Classes Commission has been ineffective. Officials who cannot ensure social justice should resign,” he said.
He alleged that DMK functionaries are involved in ganja and drug sales in the state, affecting Vanniyar youth. “We do not want ₹1,000. Closing liquor shops in Tamil Nadu is enough,” he said, adding that the PMK alone can provide good governance.
He claimed he could eradicate drugs, including ganja, within six days. “Villupuram district records the highest liquor sales in the state. If the government had taken proper action after the Marakkanam illicit liquor deaths, the Kallakurichi incident would not have happened. Those selling drugs are being protected by DMK members,” he said.
“The DMK has failed in governance and should not return to power. It has not fulfilled any of its promises. Teachers and government employees are ready to oust the DMK, and the public should also be prepared. The time has come to remove the government. For the sake of future generations, Vanniyars must unite to secure their rights,” he said.
Following the meeting, Anbumani led the Rights Retrieval Awareness Padayatra from Villupuram Four Road Junction to the Gandhi statue and addressed the public.
PMK functionaries Vadivel Ravanan, Mailam MLA C Sivakumar, and other state, district, union, and city-level leaders participated.
Earlier, Anbumani visited the Valli Deivayanai Subramania Swamy Temple in Mailam and received blessings from Srimath Sivagnana Balaya Swamigal.