Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Wednesday demanded fair demarcation of the borders of southern states, warning that his state would not accept any decision taken by the Center without its approval.
In a post on website
Stalin asked a series of questions to Prime Minister Narendra Modi. “Why is the BJP-led union government shrouding the entire delimitation process in secrecy instead of revealing how it intends to implement it?” he asked.
He pointed out that the late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee postponed the demarcation of the border in 2001 for 25 years to serve the national interest.
“What is Prime Minister Modi’s response to the just and reasonable request of the southern states to follow the same path today?” Stalin asked.
Stalin sought to know why there was “so much urgency” to hold a special session of Parliament in the middle of the five state elections.
He asked, “Why is the Union government ignoring the fair and reasonable request of the opposition leaders to hold the special session only after April 29? What is it trying to hide?” he asked.
He further said: “Imposing far-reaching constitutional amendments without even holding an all-party consultation is nothing short of dictatorship.”
Stalin also claimed that questions raised by opposition parties and the media were not answered. “Will people’s questions at least be answered?” He said.
He stressed that the DMK will not stand idly by and watch any attempt that puts the rights of the southern states at stake while dealing with greater power of the North.
He added: “This is the future of the people who live here. Any decision taken without our approval, even without communicating with us, will not be accepted no matter what.”
He added, “The south demands a fair demarcation of the borders.”
Meanwhile, in another social media post, Stalin criticized the Election Commission for transferring Chief Secretary N Muruganandam and termed it a biased and excessive political act.
“It is shameful that the Election Commission, which is supposed to conduct fair and free elections, was following the orders of the BJP under its rule.” He said.
Confirming that elections are being held in Assam, which is ruled by the BJP, he said: “The CM and general secretary have not been changed there. Elections were held in Bihar where the BJP ran an acting government. There, too, senior officials have not been changed.”
He alleged that it was only in Tamil Nadu that the Chief Secretary and DGP became an eyesore of the Election Commission and were replaced at the instigation of the BJP.
Former BJP state president Tamilisai Sundararajan took a swipe at the comments made by Stalin, saying, “We have the same concern as you, Mr. Stalin. Let me ask you one more question. If the bill that provides for 33% women in Parliament is approved, the number will be increased. If that number will increase, then why are you refusing to extend your support to it,” she asked when reporters sought her response to the comments made by Stalin.
AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami also criticized Stalin for talking about the delimitation exercise when Tamil Nadu was in the midst of Assembly elections. “Delimitation is a national practice. A central minister has already made it clear that the state will not be affected. Why are you harping on this? It seems you have nothing else to talk about. Talk about the Assembly elections. What is the use of talking about delimitation when there are no Lok Sabha elections,” Palaniswami asked.
