Amid intense criticism from the BJP over his “eradication of Sanatan Dharma” remarks, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Thursday said his son had expressed certain comments about the “inhuman principles” preached in it. He alleged that the BJP has spread a false narrative with them claiming that he called for genocide of people having Sanatan thoughts.
“Udhayanidhi Stalin expressed certain comments about inhuman principles preached by Sanatan. He expressed his views on Sanatan principles that discriminate against Scheduled Castes, tribals and women, with no intention to offend any religion or religious beliefs,” he said.
“The Social Media mob nurtured by the BJP has widely circulated…falsehood in northern states. However, Minister Udhayanidhi never used the word ‘genocide’ in either Tamil or English. Still, lies were spread claiming so,” Stalin added.
Union ministers Amit Shah and Rajnath Singh and many others “shared the same lie and condemned Udhayanidhi. Even after Udhayanidhi’s denial, these Union Ministers did not retract their statements.”
“It is disheartening to hear from the national media that the Prime Minister mentioned that Udhayanidhi’s remarks need a proper response during a meeting of his council of ministers. The Prime Minister has access to all the resources to verify any claim or report. So, is the Prime Minister speaking unaware of the lies spread about Udhayanidhi, or does he do so knowingly?” Stalin, president of the ruling DMK, asked.
Stalin also said that the prime minister has recently spoken about his cabinet colleague EV Velu in Parliament “without knowing the truth about a purported video clip” about him making some purported controversial remarks.
“Given these instances, it raises questions about whether the Prime Minister, who has failed to fulfil any of his promises, is attempting to divert attention by invoking Sanatan. Neither the Prime Minister nor his Ministers have replied on issues like Manipur (violence) or the Rs 7.50 lakh crore worth irregularities highlighted in the CAG report (in a central road scheme). But they convened the cabinet on Sanatan. Can these leaders truly protect the backward castes, Scheduled Castes, Tribal people, and uplift women,” the DMK chief asked.
He also claimed that the Opposition bloc INDIA has rattled PM Modi.
“He is proposing ‘One Nation One Election’ out of fear. It is evident that the BJP is not genuinely concerned about the discriminatory practices in Sanatan but rather desperate to create divisions within the opposition alliance. It doesn’t take a political genius to recognise this as a political gimmick,” he said.
“As far as the DMK is concerned, our ideals and goals are transparent and clear. We operate under the motto of One clan, One god and happiness of the poor. Our movement aims to uplift the Backward, Most Backward, Scheduled, and Tribal castes, minorities, women, and the poor. That’s why the people of Tamil Nadu have entrusted us with the responsibility of ruling the state for the sixth time,” he said.