CHENNAI: Taking strong exception to Electricity and Law Minister C T R Nirmal Kumar’s criticism of former chief minister M Karunanidhi over the Cauvery water dispute, DMK advocates wing joint secretary I Paranthaman on Sunday accused the TVK government of lacking transparency in handling the issue.
He also questioned the transfer of the water resources secretary at a time when the Cauvery dispute was at a critical stage.
Paranthaman demanded that the government answer three questions within 24 hours: what are the steps taken to constitute a tribunal to adjudicate the Mekedatu dam dispute, as resolved by the Tamil Nadu Assembly; what were the decisions taken at the meeting chaired by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay on Saturday regarding the Cauvery issue; and what were the reasons for the lack of an official announcement about the CM’s proposed visit to Karnataka.
Addressing a press conference at the DMK headquarters, Paranthaman said all previous CMs of Tamil Nadu had convened all-party meetings before taking major decisions on the Cauvery issue.
Referring to Nirmal Kumar’s remark that an all-party meeting could not be convened in the absence of consensus, he said differences of opinion among political parties were natural.
“It is the CM’s responsibility to bring all political parties together and build a consensus,” he said. The DMK leader also questioned why neither the CM, the water resources minister, nor the department secretary disclosed the outcome of the Saturday’s meeting on the Cauvery issue.
Responding to Nirmal Kumar’s claim that Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar did not pay heed to the views of the Congress leadership on the Cauvery issue, Paranthaman said the minister should reveal what Congress leader Rahul Gandhi had conveyed to Shivakumar and what advice he had allegedly refused.
Meanwhile, former law minister S Regupathy, in a statement, urged the TN government to immediately convene an all-party meeting. He said Nirmal Kumar should express regret for his “irresponsible” remarks against Karunanidhi.
Tiruppur MP K Subbarayan added, “It is not acceptable for a responsible minister to level such allegations without proper evidence.”