CHENNAI: Condemning Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar’s attempt to conduct bhoomi pooja for a dam across Cauvery Rivery in Mekedatu, Tamil Nadu Law Minister CTR Nirmalkumar said the deputy CM of the neighbouring state is politicising the issue, and stocking unnecessary tension between the two states.
Speaking to reporters at the secretariat in Chennai on Friday, the minister said the Supreme Court had only asked Karnataka to submit a project report for the proposed Mekedatu dam and had not granted permission for the construction work or its bhoomi pooja.
“Our Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay will not allow it. Karnataka is unnecessarily creating a law-and-order issue between the two states. DK Shivakumar is doing this for political mileage. It is highly condemnable,” he alleged.
Nirmalkumar said Tamil Nadu and Karnataka share strong trade ties and stressed the need to maintain peace. He added inter-state disputes should be handled responsibly and not through unilateral action. Asked whether the state government would convene an all-party meeting on the Mekedatu issue, the minister said the priority of the government will be to finalise the legal course of action.