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EPS gears up to take on DMK strategies in Assembly
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami, who has sustained the AIADMK government from various threats that popped up within the AIADMK in the past two years, is now gearing up to take on the strategies being planned by the arch-rival DMK.
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Chennai
After winning the Dharmayutham event led by O Panneerselvam and then the rebellion from TTV Dhinakaran during RK Nagar bypoll, now it is the no-confidence motion against the Speaker P Dhanapal that is haunting Palaniswami.
In the wake of opposition DMK gearing up to dislodge the Assembly Speaker by bringing a no-confidence motion, the AIADMK top brass is now working on strategies to protect both the Speaker and the government. Though the arithmetic is in favour of the ruling AIADMK which has 123 MLAs in the House of 233, the Chief Minister is treading cautiously.
According to AIADMK sources, Chief Minister Palaniswami is meeting the AIADMK MLAs and party functionaries at his residence and Secretariat to discuss the political trend with party legislators.
“The confidential meetings come in the wake of DMK challenging the continuation of government and the AIADMK functionaries have also learnt that the former AIADMK ministers Senthil Balaji and Anitha Radhakrishnan, now in the DMK camp, have started exploring the options of wooing the AIADMK MLAs,” an AIADMK insider said.
“All the AIADMK MLAs have been asked to ensure 100 per cent attendance in the upcoming Assembly session and participate in all the Budget debates. The session is likely to commence in the middle of June. The AIADMK MLAs have also been warned about the ‘sweet talks’ and the ‘offers’ from the rival DMK camp and avoid the Opposition,” the source told DT Next.
“Both Chief Minister Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam are confident of running the state government for the next two years and there is no threat for this government. The cadre and the AIADMK legislators are all united and the efforts of the DMK will not materialise,” said an informed AIADMK MLA.
The AIADMK had also reached out to the AMMK functionaries and the sulking MLAs, who had owed their allegiance to the AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran. Already, an organising secretary of the AMMK had joined us and more AMMK functionaries will return to the parent AIADMK, the MLA added.
According to the AIADMK sources, the party had also planned to conduct the civic polls after sorting out the internal issues within the party. Party old-timers have also started pestering the party highcommand seeking chairman posts that are vacant in the state welfare boards. The vacancy that arose due to the resignation of Congress MLA H Vasantha Kumar from NanguneriAssembly seat is also discussed by the AIADMK top brass, sources added.
AIADMK cadre upset with BJP
A section of the AIADMK party workers and seniors are upset with the BJP for ditching the proposal seeking cabinet posts for AIADMK MPs. They also expressed their piece of mind to the party leaders to follow the late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa’s example of either to take part in the Cabinet or severe the ties with the BJP.
“The AIADMK should either take part in the Union government or it should severe its ties with the BJP, so that the party is independent,” said an AIADMK MLA from western region. The AIADMK should secure a Cabinet ministry for party Rajya Sabha MP R Vaithilingam so that the state benefits through a ministerial representation at the Centre.
Further by preferring a leader from Delta region the powers are diversified within party representing the western, southern and the delta regions of TN, he explained. Former AIADMK MP Anwar Raja had also urged the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister to elect him to the Rajya Sabha as his sitting Ramanathapuram seat was awarded to the BJP in the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections.
The AIADMK functionaries are also upset with the recent tweet by RSS ideologue S Gurumurthy who tweeted, “ADMK lost 2 seats by 5 lac + votes. 5 seats by 4 lac +. 5 seats by 3 lacs +. BJP lost 2, by less than 2 lacs. 1, by less than 3 lacs & only 1, by 3 lac +. If it were anti Modi wave BJP should have lost all seats by 4 to 5 lac plus. Who’s anti wave it is then?” In response, political commentator and AIADMK sympathiser Kuralar Gopinath told TV channels on Monday that that the DMK won the Lok Sabha seats in the state due to anti-Modi wave.
Chief Minister hails PM on new pension schemes for farmers, traders
Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday hailed the BJP-led NDA government’s schemes targeting farmers, shopkeepers and the self-employed, saying the initiatives would provide universal social security. In a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the Chief Minister thanked the Centre, besides offering support for the implementation of the schemes. In the first Cabinet meeting, the government last week decided to extend Pradhan Mantri Kisan Samman Nidhi scheme to all 14.5 crore farmers in the country and also announced over Rs 10,000 crore pension scheme for five crore farmers. “...I thank you for having generously expanded the ambit of the PM-KISAN scheme to include all land-holding eligible farmer families, announcing the pension scheme for small and marginal farmers,” the CM said in the letter. The cabinet also approved a new scheme, which assures minimum monthly pension of Rs 3,000 to all shopkeepers, retail traders and self-employed persons after attaining the age of 60 years. Calling it a path-breaking initiative, the CM expressed his gratitude to the Centre for providing pension to shopkeepers, retail traders and the self-employed.
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