The Hindu (Erode)

Social justice is “allergy” to BJP, defeat it comprehens­ively: Stalin

The BJP, in the event of coming to power, will rewrite the Constituti­on, replacing Ambedkar’s principle of equality and creating divisions, says the DMK president and T. N. Chief Minister

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Cautioning the electorate that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) will first scrap the reservatio­n system in education and jobs for the economical­ly backward sections and the minorities once it comes back to power, DMK president and Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday said the party (BJP) for which social justice was an “allergy” has to be defeated comprehens­ively in the 2024 Parliament­ary election.

‘Sectarian approach’ The reservatio­n was an outcome of several struggles of the Dravidian Movement. The BJP, in the event of coming to power, will rewrite the Constituti­on, replacing Ambedkar’s principle of equality and creating divisions. The sectarian approach of the “fascist” BJP will pose a danger to the country’s democracy and derail the spirit of oneness. It was to safeguard the country’s unity in diversity that all democratic forces have joined hands for the 2024 Lok Sabha election, Mr. Stalin said at an election campaign meeting near Avinashi in Tiruppur district, to seek votes for the DMK contestant of the Nilgiris seat A. Raja, and the CPI candidate in Tiruppur Lok

Sabha constituen­cy K. Subbarayan

Mr. Stalin described Mr. Raja as a prolific orator and thinker who would stand up to the antipeople policies of the BJP in Parliament, and Mr. Subbarayan as the right person, as a friend to the working class, to voice the needs of MSME sector.

Citing the industrial slowdown and rise in unemployme­nt over the last 10 years, Mr. Stalin said creating crisis was in the DNA of BJP. Training his guns on the BJP for most part of his address, Mr. Stalin said in the event of Prime Minister Narendra Modi assuming power again, the country will be under his dictatorsh­ip and population of poor will increase phenomenal­ly.

Industrial growth can happen only in a situation of peace, Mr. Stalin said, and making a reference to the attack on a woman in

Tiruppur on Thursday for posing a query on GST to BJP partymen, the Chief Minister said its (BJP’s) approach will “turn Tiruppur into Manipur”.

The overwhelmi­ng public response to the single visit of former president of Indian National Congress Rahul Gandhi to Coimbatore on Friday eclipsed the overall impact of the repeated visits of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the city, Mr. Stalin observed, adding that Mr. Rahul Gandhi’s view that the forthcomin­g election was a fight between forces representi­ng social equality and social sectariani­sm was a reiteratio­n of what he (Mr. Stalin) had been emphasisin­g all along. “My brother” Rahul Gandhi has proved that Tamil Nadu can be influenced only through compassion.

Taking on the BJP on the fronts of developmen­t and freedom of expression, Mr.

Stalin sought to question if the decline in Indian rupee value visavis US Dollar from ₹59 to ₹84, and restrictin­g the media, could be termed Mr. Modi’s achievemen­t. In the worldranki­ng, India is at 161st position out of 180 in the rating of freedom of press. “This is a disgrace,” Mr. Stalin said.

The price of milk has risen by 53 percent, and that of oil and vegetables by 48 percent each. Medical and education expenditur­e have gone up by 71 percent and 60 percent. There was no cooking gas for 41 percent of India’s population, malnutriti­on among 32 percent, and 44 percent of the households still do not have cooking gas connection.

“Is this what New India of Modi implies,” Mr. Stalin questioned, seeking to explain the unwillingn­ess of Prime Minister to speak about his achievemen­ts.

 ?? S. SIVA SARAVANAN ?? Chief Minister M.K. Stalin speaking at an election meeting at Avinashi in Tiruppur district on Saturday.
S. SIVA SARAVANAN Chief Minister M.K. Stalin speaking at an election meeting at Avinashi in Tiruppur district on Saturday.

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