Edappadi Palanisamy government making efforts for good Centre-state ties

In yet another move that will bolster the relations, the state government has proposed to prepare a souvenir of the achievements of the three-year BJP rule, the same regime of late J Jayalalithaa used to be at loggerheads with over the issue of claiming credit for schemes. The department of information and publicity (DIPR) has been collecting reports on the “success stories” of 17 central schemes from all its district public relation officers since last week. 

In fact, a circular titled “preparation of souvenir of three-year achievements of union government” (copy available with DTNext), and issued by J Kumaragurubaran, director, DIPR, opens thus, “Union government has been implementing numerous schemes countrywide for the growth and benefit of people of all walks of life.”

That EPS has chosen to trumpet BJP’s success shortly after instructing his cabinet colleagues not to badmouth about the Centre should sufficiently explain the ruling dispensation’s desperation, which seems to have already impressed BJP national bosses.

Reception of positive feelers from New Delhi could be made out from the recent belligerence of EPS camp, including on Friday when Lok Sabha deputy Speaker Thambidurai referred to VK Sasikala by the once popular sobriquet “chinnamma” in his poser to OPS.

Palanisamy, who has been cosying up to the BJP through a former judge and an auditor was also learnt to have planned to depute electricity minister P Thangamani to meet Prime Minister Modi and BJP chief Amit Shah in New Delhi early next week on the pretext of official duty. 

The growing affinity between ruling AIADMK and BJP has already left rival OPS camp exasperated. “It is normal for GoI to seek data because State implements central schemes, but this is unusual. EPS growing affinity with BJP does not bode well for the latter,” said a senior leader of OPS camp. 

Incidentally, AIAMDK Rajya Sabha MP Dr V Maitreyan on Saturday criticised EPS government’s efficacy or the lack of it, and even forecast the fall of the regime shortly. 

“Edappadi Palanisamy’s government days are numbered. It will fall under its own weight,” he added, indicating the impossibility of the merger.