‘Intolerant BJP stoking migrant workers tension for political gains’

CHENNAI: The ruling DMK on Monday accused the BJP of stoking tension using the north Indian workers to prevent a non-BJP political consolidation in the country.

Extensively recalling the participation of Samajwadi party leader Akhilesh Yadav and Bihar deputy chief minister Tejasvi Yadav in Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin's 70th birthday celebration, a strongly-worded editorial titled, "The conspiracy behind the rumours" published in DMK party organ Murasoli Monday said, "BJP is unable to tolerate the participation of national leaders like Akhilesh and Tejasvi Yadav. The rumours spread about the attack on north Indian workers in Tamil Nadu was their conspiracy to destroy the harmony. The intention of spreading the rumour was to prevent an all-India level political union and a political consolidation against BJP under one umbrella."

Pointing out that BJP spokesperson in UP Prashant Umarao was the first person who spread rumors that 12 persons from Bihar were killed in Tamil Nadu for speaking in Hindi, the DMK party organ referred to cases booked against him in this regard and said that the photograph (photo of Stalin presenting a memento to Tejasvi last year) used by Prashant on Twitter was the proof of the political conspiracy behind spreading the rumours.

Citing the article published in a leading Hindi daily in Bihar, the Murasoli editorial said, "The news report quoted Chief Minister MK Stalin as asking Hindi speaking people to leave Tamil Nadu. When and where did the CM say so? Do you have evidence? That the story has an intention is evident in the story even."

Adding that the north Indian news reports quoted UP CM Yogi Adityanath as offering jobs to Hindi speakers returning from Tamil Nadu, the editorial said that there was no official word on the UP CM making such a statement. "But, they are manufacturing tension by claiming that he made such statements. They do not know how safe the north Indian workers are in Tamil Nadu,” the DMK party mouthpiece added.

Referring to a variety of assistance offered by the TN government to north Indian workers during Covid, the CM said, "What happened during Covid in UP? An elderly woman was administered the Rabies vaccine instead of Covid vaccine. That is the UP regime."

Recalling the condemnation registered by Allahabad High Court to the UP government in a public interest litigation questioning the failure in supply of medical oxygen during the pandemic, the article said, "Everyone is living peacefully in Tamil Nadu. People will reject those who attempt to destroy the peace and tranquillity."