Oppn parties up the ante against TVK, seek Guv’s intervention

CHENNAI: It was a busy weekend for Governor RV Arlekar, as multiple delegations of Opposition parties made a beeline to the Lok Bhavan, with memorandums against the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, accusing them of horse-trading bids and breaking constitutional protocols.

After submitting a memorandum to the Governor, DMK’s organising secretary RS Bharathi told reporters that the party raised concerns over alleged attempts by the ruling party to induce Opposition MLAs to switch sides. Bharathi said the DMK has also submitted a representation regarding the participation of John Arockiasamy and Vishnu Reddy in Cabinet and other high-level government meetings, alleging that neither held any official position in the State government.

“The Governor told us that if they are to participate in such meetings, they should have been appointed as ministers,” Bharathi claimed. The DMK leader further alleged that former minister and DMK MLA Anitha R Radhakrishnan was pressured to join the ruling party while in police custody. He claimed that Nagercoil MLA S Austin and Veppanahalli MLA PS Srinivasan had also been offered ministerial berths and Rs 50 crore to join the TVK.

Meanwhile, AIADMK whip Agri S S Krishnamurthy and Rajya Sabha MP and party advocate wing secretary IS Inbadurai submitted a representation alleging that the TVK government was attempting to lure six of their MLAs.

Speaking to reporters later, Krishnamurthy alleged that no action had been taken on their earlier petitions.

Escalating its offensive against the TVK-led coalition government, the BJP delegation led by State president Nainar Nagenthran urged Arlekar to intervene on two politically sensitive issues — the alleged presence of two private individuals at the State Cabinet meeting on June 5, which is a violation of the oath of secrecy governing Cabinet proceedings. The party also requested the Governor to order an impartial probe into the alleged inappropriate behaviour of minister P Viswanathan with a minor girl at a recent public function.

Interestingly, K Venkata Narayana, newly appointed special representative to Delhi, also called on the Governor.