CHENNAI: DMK leader and former Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu on Tuesday accused the TVK government of deliberately stalling development works and withholding contractor payments to falsely project a reduced debt burden as a financial achievement.

Responding to reports that the state’s borrowing through government bonds fell by 21 per cent in the first half of the current fiscal year compared to the corresponding period last year, he questioned the Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay-led TVK government’s silence on underlying economic realities.

"The TVK government is trying to present lower borrowing as a massive achievement," Thennarasu stated.

"But shouldn't they disclose how this debt requirement decreased? They must release full details of the capital expenditure and developmental works undertaken in this first half," Thennarasu said on 'X'.

Drawing a direct contrast with the previous DMK regime's performance, he highlighted allocation figures from the 2025–26 budget. "Under the DMK governance, Rs 57,231 crore was allocated for capital expenditures. According to provisional monthly accounts of the CAG, Rs 13,002.22 crore was spent effectively between April and September 2025 on key infrastructure projects, including the Metro Rail," he asserted.

Posing a series of questions to the current administration, the DMK leader demanded to know what the exact capital expenditure incurred by the TVK government was from April to September. Out of its total budgetary allocation, how much has actually been spent on new infrastructure initiatives, and what is the total outstanding amount that the TVK government has failed to disburse for ongoing projects initiated during the DMK regime.

"Can a government claim financial management accolades by delaying development works, withholding payments for completed projects, and artificially inflating cash reserves to borrow less," Thennarasu asked, adding, "Keeping pending dues unpaid cannot be classified as savings."

Also, he pointed out a massive contradiction in the government's fiscal roadmap, revealing that while the TVK administration boasts of reduced borrowing in the first half, it has planned a massive borrowing spree of Rs 48,000 crore for the October–December quarter alone. This figure is more than double the Rs 23,500 crore raised in the preceding quarter.