CHENNAI: The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee’s special General Council meeting in Chennai on Thursday passed a resolution opposing Karnataka’s proposed Mekedatu dam project and urged the State government to protect Tamil Nadu’s share of Cauvery water.
Congress general secretary KC Venugopal, who addressed the meeting, warned party functionaries that positions and electoral seats would be given only to those who actively worked for the party and urged them to work towards making Rahul Gandhi the next PM. “Some people are showing indifference towards party work. In the coming days, responsibility and positions will be given only to members who actually work,” he said.
He said the Congress should work with clarity towards making Rahul Gandhi the Prime Minister in 2029 and called upon the Tamil Nadu unit to prepare for the goal.
The resolution was adopted on the day Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar was in Tamil Nadu to attend the South Zone Chief Ministers’ meeting amid TVK members hailing Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay as the next PM.
The Congress said Cauvery water sharing should be implemented in accordance with the 2007 final award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal and the 2018 Supreme Court judgment. It alleged that Karnataka had continued to deny Tamil Nadu its rightful share of Cauvery water despite the legal orders.
Opposing Karnataka’s proposal to construct a 67.15 TMC capacity dam at Mekedatu, the council said the project could affect Tamil Nadu’s share of Cauvery water and have serious consequences for the Cauvery Delta. It assured support for all steps taken by the Tamil Nadu government to safeguard the state’s water rights and prevent the construction of the dam.
The council also passed a resolution seeking the retention of the existing 543 Lok Sabha constituencies, based on the 1971 Census, for another 25 years, along with a 33 per cent reservation for women.
Another resolution welcomed a new era of coalition politics and Congress’s participation in the government led by TVK leader and Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay.
Taking a swipe at the DMK’s criticism that the Congress had “backstabbed” it after the elections, Venugopal said the Congress would never cheat or stab anyone in the back.
“If we had not supported Vijay, President’s Rule would have come. Or the indirect rule arranged by the BJP would have come into effect,” he said.