Shah, Palaniswami combine will decide on CM face for ’26 polls, says Murugan
The Chief Minister is responsible for failing to concentrate on these human rights violations, he said, adding that, “Even the parties with the DMK alliance are maintaining an unusual silence” on the issue.
Union MoS for Information and Broadcasting L Murugan
TIRUCHY: Union minister L Murugan on Monday said that AIADMK leads the NDA in Tamil Nadu and its chief Edappadi K Palaniswami alone can inform about who would be the Chief Ministerial candidate in the 2026 Assembly polls.
Speaking to reporters in Tiruchy, he reiterated that AIADMK is the leading partner of the NDA in the State. Edappadi K Palaniswami, being the head of the alliance, is entitled to select the Chief Ministerial candidate, he added. “At the same time, the Union Home Minister Amit Shah has already spoken about the formation of a coalition government and thus, both Amit Shah and Edappadi Palaniswami would decide on the power sharing,” he said, adding that the alliance will have a massive victory in the upcoming Assembly polls.
Meanwhile, slamming the DMK government for lock-up deaths, he said that such murders are testimony to the poor governance of the Chief Minister MK Stalin-led regime. People are afraid to go to the police station with any complaint over such fears, he claimed. The Chief Minister is responsible for failing to concentrate on these human rights violations, he said, adding that, “Even the parties with the DMK alliance are maintaining an unusual silence” on the issue.
Answering a query about his meeting with the music director AR Rahman, Murugan said that it was a casual visit. As the minister for the Information and Broadcasting department, I visited Rahman’s studio, and there was no politics involved, he clarified. He also stated that he would welcome actress Meena wholeheartedly if she joined the BJP.
Earlier, Murugan presided over the first-ever special grievances redressal meeting for defence pensioners, in which around 5,000 ex-servicemen from across the region participated. While addressing them, Minister Murugan said that pending dues worth Rs 1.50 crore have been released to the ex-service personnel. He said the Union government has organised such camps to address the grievances of ex-service personnel across 206 locations.
