TIRUCHY: Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) president Thol Thirumavalavan on Sunday avoided a direct answer on whether he is happy with the possibility of the PMK leader S Ramadoss’s faction joining the DMK-led alliance, saying the decision rests entirely with the Stalin-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) leadership.
Speaking to reporters at Tiruchy airport after arriving from Chennai, Thirumavalavan said one faction of the Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) had already joined the BJPled National Democratic Alliance (NDA), and that it was for the DMK to decide whether to accommodate the other faction. He recalled that the VCK had decided 14 years ago that it would not be part of any alliance in which the BJP and PMK were constituents.
Turning to Edappadi Palaniswami, Thirumavalavan said it was no longer possible to claim that the NDA was functioning under the AIADMK’s leadership, calling it a major setback for the party. He expressed concern over what he described as the AIADMK being “trapped in the grip of Sanatana ideology” and said the party’s decline was worrying.
He said the political situation had reached a stage where no one could even claim that the AIADMK would return to power in Tamil Nadu. “We are concerned about the state of the AIADMK,” he added. Thirumavalavan accused the BJP-led Union government of promoting Hindi imposition and aggressive “Sanskritisation”, and said the Centre was targeting India’s linguistic and cultural diversity. He warned that the “one language, one culture” approach of the Modi government posed a threat to the country’s pluralistic character, and called on democratic forces across the nation to unite to protect their languages and cultures.
Questioning the Prime Minister’s “double engine government” slogan, he asked whether it meant one engine in Delhi and another in Tamil Nadu, or two engines within the State itself.
On actor-turned-politician Vijay, the leader of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), Thirumavalavan said it was difficult to guess his stand on the BJP as he had so far not criticised the party or its functioning, even when there were occasions to do so. He said he expected Vijay to either form a separate front or contest alone in the polls.