PUDUCHERRY: Puducherry DMK Convener and Leader of the Opposition R Siva charged that the NDA government at the Centre was misusing their power to subjugate the Puducherry government, forcing the UT to meet their demands.
The BJP intends to gain strength by all means and capture posts, without helping Puducherry with welfare and development, expressed Siva at a public meeting on Sunday night.
Siva added, the party which had lost deposit while contesting the 2016 Assembly polls, won six seats in the 2021 assembly polls out of nine seats it contested by poaching candidates from other parties. Further, the Union government appointed three party supporters as nominated MLAs of the Assembly, and grabbed the Rajya Sabha seat and Speaker post from its ally the AINRC.
Now, with an eye on the lone Puducherry Lok Sabha seat, the party is preparing to contest the seat in 2024. Union Ministers are frequently visiting Puducherry with Home Minister Amit Shah visiting Puducherry once in six months, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi visiting during and after the Assembly polls.
During the last election, the Centre promised double-engine growth for Puducherry with the same party government in the Centre and State.
According to Siva, Shah and Modi had promised to develop Puducherry, and the latter said Puducherry would be made BEST (Business, Education, Spirituality and Tourism) hubs. The Union Finance Minister Nirmal Sithraman, too, made promises of loan waivers, he said adding that the NDA parties promised to fill up 10,000 vacant posts, and revive textile mills.
The UT government intends to present a Rs 11,000-crore Budget this year, said the DMK leader, asking how it would be possible when the State does not have any revenue. "The Centre has provided even less central assistance than previous year for the Puducherry budget. There is no money in sectors including regional development and tourism," said Siva.
Compensation for GST ended last June. " The UT surrendered the money they got in last year's budget without spending it (as they have no funds to provide the Puducherry component for centrally sponsored schemes). In these circumstances, the government will present a bad budget this year, too, dashing the hopes of residents."
The opposition leader further said, the only hope was to elect a DMK government to power to protect Puducherry, bring in industrial units, and generate employment opportunities. "The DMK should get the lone Lok Sabha seat from the Congress," he said.