TN govt caught in hands of circus gang, says Udhayanidhi Stalin

CHENNAI: Leader of the Opposition and DMK youth wing secretary Udhayanidhi Stalin on Sunday stepped up his attack on the ruling TVK government, dubbing it a ‘circus gang’ and accusing Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay of evading questions on law and order, as he turned the spotlight on the upcoming Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly by-elections.

Speaking at a wedding function at Velappanchavadi, Udhayanidhi said he had raised 16 questions with Vijay during a 38-minute intervention in the Assembly over the alleged deterioration in law and order during the past four months.

“Even when the Chief Minister returned to the Assembly three days later, he did not answer a single question. Instead, he spoke about the Sarkaria Commission and MISA arrests from 50 years ago,” he said.

Referring to Vijay’s remarks about three files on his table, Udhayanidhi said he had asked the Chief Minister to open them and take immediate action if anyone was at fault. “I told him, ‘Please open them soon and take action immediately.’ There has been no response so far,” he said.

Taking a swipe at the Assembly proceedings, he said, “Tamil Nadu is caught in the hands of a circus gang.” He also mocked ruling party members for singing during proceedings, asking whether legislators had come to the Assembly or a ‘Super Singer’ programme. He said only ‘fight and dance’ were left.

Udhayanidhi claimed TVK had 106 MLAs against the 118 required for a majority and alleged that the government depended on legislators elected on the DMK-led alliance’s record.

Udhayanidhi further alleged that the AIADMK MLAs had been bought and urged the DMK cadre to expose what he called the government’s misdeeds before the people.