CHENNAI: The AIADMK on Monday questioned Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s decision to travel to the UK to sign an MoU with Samvardhana Motherson International Limited (SAMIL), an Indian-headquartered company, for a proposed Rs 11,000 crore investment in Tamil Nadu.
AIADMK spokesperson Kovai Sathyan, in a post on X, pointed out that SAMIL was incorporated in India in 1986 and has its corporate office in Noida. He questioned why the chief minister had to travel to the UK at taxpayers’ expense to secure the investment.
Responding to the criticism, Guidance Tamil Nadu said that while Motherson is headquartered in India, the proposed investment has an international dimension involving its joint-venture partners in the UK and Europe, besides its global technical capabilities and partnerships. Motherson operates in more than 45 countries, it said.
“While Motherson is an Indian-headquartered global company, the proposed investment has a strong international dimension, bringing together its global JV network, technical capabilities and international partnerships to further strengthen Tamil Nadu’s advanced manufacturing ecosystem,” Guidance said in a post on X.
Earlier in the day, the DMK mouthpiece Murasoli criticised the TVK government over its claim that Tamil Nadu had attracted investment commitments of more than Rs 1 lakh crore within about 100 days of the government assuming office.
The DMK mocked the CM’s ongoing London visit to attract investments to the state, alleging that he had travelled there to watch a car race. Claiming that reports showed new investment proposals in Tamil Nadu had declined by about 74.5% in the first quarter of 2026, the DMK alleged that all industrial companies are marching towards Andhra Pradesh. As soon as Vijay became CM, the first thing to collapse was Tamil Nadu’s industrial growth, it said.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy also took a swipe at Vijay’s London visit and the proposed Motor Sports City, describing them as publicity exercises.