Coimbatore, Sept 28:
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Sunday launched a fresh attack on Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay over the Karur stampede, alleging that the TVK leader remained away from public view at his Panaiyur residence for 72 days after the tragedy.
Addressing an election campaign in Dharapuram, Palaniswami alleged that Vijay did not visit those who were injured in the incident or the homes of the families who lost their relatives. He also accused the Chief Minister of failing to pay formal tributes to those who died at the TVK campaign rally in Karur last year. These were allegations made by Palaniswami and were not independently established in the report.
Palaniswami said other political parties had visited the victims and their families and questioned why Vijay had not followed a similar course. He also criticised the decision to invite bereaved families to Chennai to meet the Chief Minister instead of Vijay visiting their homes to offer condolences.
The AIADMK leader made the remarks while campaigning in the run-up to the Dharapuram by-election. He also alleged that the TVK candidate had entered the party through what he described as āhorse-tradingā and appealed to voters to respond to what he termed a betrayal of the people’s mandate.
Palaniswami further claimed that Left parties supporting the TVK government had expressed reservations about its functioning and could reconsider their support if the situation continued. He also criticised the government over its electoral promises and its proposal to construct a new Secretariat using borrowed funds.
He described Vijay as a ācostly Chief Ministerā while alleging that around Rs 4.5 crore had been spent on releasing water from the Mettur dam. He also alleged that power interruptions had become frequent, including during programmes attended by Ministers. These claims were part of his political criticism of the government.
Palaniswami also responded to Vijay’s criticism of the AIADMK as a ābranch of the DMKā. Displaying a photograph of Vijay riding a bicycle with a sticker bearing the DMK flag colours during the 2021 Assembly election, he instead claimed that the TVK was a branch of the DMK and rejected Vijay’s suggestion that the AIADMK could eventually merge with the TVK.
The AIADMK leader’s strongest criticism centred on the Karur stampede, in which 41 people died during a TVK campaign rally. The incident continues to remain a major political issue, with rival parties differing sharply over the political and organisational responsibility surrounding the tragedy.