SALEM: “Even after the centre made it clear in Parliament that delimitation will not affect Tamil Nadu and that its representation will in fact increase, Chief Minister M K Stalin is pushing a false narrative ahead of the election,” said AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami while campaigning in Salem on Friday.
Elaborating on delimitation, he said that as per the centre’s clarification in the Parliament, the number of Parliamentary constituencies in Tamil Nadu is set to increase from 39 to 59 and the state’s share would rise from 7.18% to 7.23%.
He alleged that despite this, the DMK was continuing to spread misinformation and create unnecessary fear among the public for electoral gains. He also questioned calls to hoist black flags, stating that such appeals had not found support among the public.
Responding to the CM’s statement that no one from the South could become the prime minister after delimitation, he said the claim was misleading and added that it was due to decisions taken during M Karunanidhi’s tenure that leaders like G K Moopanar did not get the opportunity to become PM, and that A P J Abdul Kalam was not supported for a second term.
He further said, “Even now, the AIADMK supported a Tamil leader C P Radhakrishnan for the vice-president’s post, but the DMK opposed the move,” and alleged that “for the DMK, only their family members are worthy of representing Tamil Nadu and holding positions of power”.
On governance, Palaniswami alleged that the ruling party had prioritised family interests over public welfare, and said that “positions of power in centre had benefitted only the family and not the public, with no significant project or fund being brought to the state”.
Raising serious allegations on liquor sales, he said there are around 6,000 Tasmac outlets functioning across the state and about 1.5 crore bottles are sold daily. He also claimed that enforcement agencies had flagged irregularities and that a detailed probe could reveal corruption to a much larger extent.
He also accused the DMK of neglecting farmers, alleging that projects meant to support agriculture have been stalled, and said that such initiatives would be revived if the AIADMK returned to power.
On government employees, he said poll promises made to them by the DMK had not been fulfilled, referring to assurances regarding pension schemes.
Palaniswami campaigned in four constituencies — Sangagiri, Veerapandi, Omalur and Mettur — in Salem district.
