Will send corrupt ministers to jail, if voted to power: Stalin

Leading a massive protest in Salem, the first since taking over as the party president, Stalin said the DMK is keeping a close watch on ministers found amassing ill-gotten wealth.

“We have a list of ministers, who have bought properties through benamis, and officials who helped them in corruption, with proof. All of them will be sent to jail once the DMK comes to power,” he said.

Terming the State government as a ‘spineless slave’ to the Centre, Stalin alleged that the AIADMK is giving ‘commission’ to the BJP-led union government using the looted money.

“Corruption has become all-pervasive in the AIADMK. The ministers are competing with each other in corruption. Among the 33 ministers, SP Velumani tops the list,” he said.

Listing out the various corruption charges faced by the ministers, the DMK leader said, “The Chief Minister himself is involved in irregularities while awarding contracts.” 

“Tamil Nadu people are inclined to reject this corrupt government. It was the people who voted for the government, but today they are on the verge of frustration. The AIADMK government would be removed from power even before the 2019 parliamentary polls,” he said, adding that the BJP-led Central government should also be removed.

Stating that the DMK is bestowed with a bigger responsibility of rescuing the State from the clutches of a corrupt AIADMK, Stalin said that his party has moved court demanding a probe into the awarding of highway contracts to a private firm associated with the Chief Minister.

“Bigger scams will be exposed once the probe begins,” he said and further claimed, “Although the deputy chief minister has stated in his election affidavit that his revenue was only Rs 5 lakh, he has invested Rs 200 crore in Indonesia, Turkey and Malaysia.”

The DMK held protests against the State government in several places across the central districts on Tuesday.

Presiding over the agitation in Tiruchy, former minister KN Nehru said, “Despite spending Rs 3 crore, which is much more than the estimated amount, to build a bund across Kollidam river near the collapsed regulator, water leakage could not be stopped. This shows the incompetence of the AIADMK ministers, who failed to monitor the works properly.” 

He also lashed out at Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai who had claimed that the DMK has been planning to align with the BJP. 

Speaking at Perambalur, former union minister A Raja criticised the Central government for not taking any action against the corruption-tainted State ministers and police officers involved in the gutkha scam.

District secretary SS Sivasankar, who led the agitation at Ariyalur, said, “The minister and police officers, who were subjected to the CBI raid, should resign from their posts immediately.”

Newly appointed principal secretary of the party, TR Baalu said, “If the government’s claim regarding desilting is true, why did not the Cauvery water flow to the tail-end areas. No one knows what happened to the funds allotted for the desilting works.”

Similar protests were held in Pudukkottai, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Karur and Ariyalur.