Chennai, Jan 29: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin’s foreign visits have come under scrutiny as K. Annamalai, the State president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), alleged that these trips have failed to attract investments to Tamil Nadu. Annamalai voiced his concerns during a press conference in Coimbatore on Sunday, pointing out that despite visits to Dubai, Japan, and Spain, the state has seen no substantial investments.The BJP leader criticized Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi’s (VCK) Thol. Thirumavalavan for his perceived silence on the challenges faced by the Scheduled Castes (SC) in Tamil Nadu. Annamalai claimed that Thirumavalavan’s silence is driven by a desire for a seat in the upcoming Lok Sabha election, accusing the DMK government of adversely affecting the SC community in the state.
Highlighting financial matters, Annamalai alleged that the DMK government returned ₹10,000 crore out of the ₹16,000 crore provided by the Centre to the State. He suggested that the DMK’s actions were fueled by fear of the BJP, emphasizing the BJP’s commitment to a different style of politics that does not involve distributing biriyani and hosting public meetings.
Accusing Chief Minister Stalin of spreading misinformation, Annamalai specifically addressed issues related to traditional events like jallikattu and rekla race. He asserted that these events faced bans in 2006 when the Congress was in power at the Centre, with the DMK holding ministerial positions. Annamalai credited the BJP government for removing bulls from the list of performing animals.