COIMBATORE: Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) high-level Administrative Committee Chief Coordinator KA Sengottaiyan on Tuesday accused the BJP of meddling in alliances, by saying that talks of tie-ups with any party prompt immediate interference from Delhi.
Responding to a query by the media in Coimbatore on the possibility of O Panneerselvam joining TVK, Sengottaiyan remarked that the moment discussions on alliances begin, ‘those from Delhi step in.’ “So it's better to avoid talking about alliances,” he said.
Dismissing disappointment within TVK over AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran joining the NDA alliance, Sengottaiyan said Dhinakaran had initially intended to align with TVK, but later changed his stance in view of the prevailing political situation.
On speculation about PMK founder S Ramadoss holding talks with TVK, Sengottaiyan said he too read such information and ‘let good things happen’.
To a query on Vijay’s criticism that AIADMK had forgotten CN Annadurai, the TVK leader said both the DMK and AIADMK had forgotten Anna’s legacy. “I exited from AIADMK because the party had forgotten ‘Amma,’ ‘Thalaivar’ and ‘Anna’, while failing to even carry their pictures. It's impossible to create a leader by erasing them all. One shouldn’t forget their roots,” he said.
Referring to remarks made by AIADMK general secretary ‘Edappadi’ K Palaniswami that TVK’s flag was fluttering and that a major party could join its alliance at a recent campaign meeting in Namakkal, Sengottaiyan said it was Palaniswami who made such an announcement out of expectation, but the situation has changed.
Stating that AIADMK ministers and their IT wing should focus on exposing the DMK’s alleged wrongdoings, Sengottaiyan said instead they were targeting TVK, a newly formed party. “This shows the AIADMK is functioning as DMK's B team,” he said.
On allegations of corruption, Sengottaiyan said court rulings had established that he was clean. He claimed that several cases had been filed against him out of political vendetta, but the courts cleared him. He warned that legal action would be taken against anyone who continued to level such allegations against him.