CHENNAI: Minister for Energy Resources and Law CTR Nirmal Kumar on Friday launched a fresh attack on the DMK, accusing the party and former chief minister M Karunanidhi of compromising Tamil Nadu’s interests in the Cauvery river dispute.
Responding to Durai Murugan’s remarks, Nirmal Kumar told reporters at the secretariat that the DMK leader himself was a “living example of DMK’s betrayal”.
He claimed provisions in the Cauvery agreement that envisaged regulation of the river by an authority headed by the prime minister were diluted during the DMK’s tenure. He alleged that Karunanidhi’s interests, including assets in Karnataka, had influenced the party’s approach to the inter-state river dispute.
Tracing the history of the issue, Nirmal Kumar alleged that the DMK government, led by Karunanidhi, did not strongly oppose Karnataka’s construction of the Hemavathi, Kabini and other reservoirs in the early 1970s.
He also claimed that the government withdrew a case against Karnataka in 1971 and failed to renew the 50-year Cauvery water-sharing agreement after it expired in 1974. He added that the TVK would pursue all legal remedies, including approaching the Supreme Court, to prevent the construction of the proposed Mekedatu dam.