AIADMK co-coordinator Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Tuesday charged that the ruling DMK had no fortitude to fight the urban civic elections alone as the people were angry with its misrule in the State.
Campaigning for the AIADMK candidates at a meeting in Tiruchi, he said his party was fighting the elections alone as it had immense faith in the people. But the DMK, which was portraying that it had a “super Chief Minister”, who claims to have done an enviable job during the last nine-month rule, had a rainbow alliance with the Congress, the CPI, the CPI(M) and others. The DMK would not have gone with the alliance if it had the confidence that the people would support it , he felt. “The AIADMK has guts to fight the elections. I wonder whether the DMK can fight it alone?’ said Mr. Palaniswami.
Denying the charge that the AIADMK was the “voice” of the BJP in the State, Mr. Palaniswami said the DMK was actually the “dubbing voice” of the Congress. The AIADMK had been articulating the aspirations of the people as a responsible Opposition, he said.
According to him, the DMK, known for its “false and concocted propaganda” was again trying to create an impression that Mr. Stalin was an incomparable Chief Minister. His party had been enacting a drama as if it had done yeoman service to the people. It was nothing but an attempt to hoodwink the voters again, he claimed.
Stating that the DMK had miserably failed to implement most of its poll promises such as the ₹1000 monthly aid to women heads of families, waiver of education loans, Self-Help Group loans, subsidy for LPG cylinders, reduction in fuel prices and others, Mr. Palaniswami said they remain only on paper. The ruling party also failed to deliver on its major promise to the government servants on reintroducing the old pension scheme. The people and the government servants were watching the drama and they would teach a fitting lesson to the DMK in the urban local bodies polls.
He claimed that the DMK had been arm-twisting to cripple the AIADMK candidates and cadre in several areas, including Salem and Coimbatore, by foisting false cases with the support of the police. The police machinery had been following discriminatory approach at the insistence of the rulers. The police should play an impartial role in maintaining Law and Order.
Earlier, Mr. Palaniswami campaigned for the party candidates in Thanjavur and Kumbakonam.
