CHENNAI: Tourism Minister and Congress floor leader S Rajesh Kumar on Saturday criticised former ally the DMK over resolutions passed at the party's Youth Wing meeting in Chennai, accusing it of displaying "hegemonic attitude" and disrespecting coalition partners after its electoral defeat.
in which the Congress party was allegedly criticised for "betraying" the DMK after enjoying the benefits of power.
Defending the Congress party's role in the alliance, he pointed out that Congress votes contributed to DMK victories in several constituencies, while the DMK and other secular alliance partners supported Congress candidates in the 28 seats the party contested.
He said claims made after the election that alliance parties won only because of DMK votes were unacceptable and reflected the DMK's "superiority mindset." According to him, even after suffering a major electoral setback, the DMK had failed to learn political lessons from the people's verdict.
Rajesh Kumar further alleged that slogans against the Congress and VCK, along with criticism of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, were raised during the Youth Wing meeting in the presence of DMK president MK Stalin and Udhayanidhi Stalin. He termed the slogans politically uncivilised and said they caused deep disappointment among Congress cadres.
Rajesh Kumar said parties such as the Congress, VCK and IUML joined the TVK-led government because they accepted Vijay's "broad democratic approach" of sharing administrative power, something he described as unprecedented in Tamil Nadu politics over the past six decades. He cautioned that if the DMK continued such criticism, it would have to face "serious consequences."