DMK accuses Centre of operating electoral dictatorship

Chennai: The opposition DMK has accused the Central government of operating ‘electoral dictatorship’ and said the party was ready to ‘pay any price’ to uphold the constitution values. The Dravidian major also announced to stage agitations throughout Tamil Nadu on Sept. 18 demanding the sacking of the ‘tainted’ Health Minister Dr C. Vijayabaskar and removal of DGP T. K. Rajendran for their alleged involvement in the gutka scam.

A meeting of the party’s district secretaries, MPs and MLAs, with party president M. K. Stalin in the chair, vowed to “defeat” the BJP’s “saffronisation dreams.” The meeting, the first to be headed by Mr. Stalin following his elevation on August 28 as party chief, criticised the BJP-led government at the Centre on issues such as demonetisation, Rafale deal, NEET and the prevailing economic situation.

“The BJP government is ignoring the interests of Tamil Nadu, affecting plurality and promoting communalism, even as human rights activists and those opposed to the BJP are being painted as anti-nationals,” a resolution adopted in the meeting said. The resolution titled ‘Will reject BJP’s saffronisation dreams’ alleged that media which is critical of the BJP government is being “intimidated” while Dalits and minorities are targeted in many places. An “undeclared emergency” was, therefore, in place, it said.

“The BJP has installed an electoral dictatorship and has been running an anti-people government for the last four years,” the Dravidian party said and added such a dictatorship challenges Parliamentary democracy. The resolution passed at the meeting accused the BJP of controlling institutions like the Election Commission, I-T Department and CBI, and said “there is a crisis” even in the judiciary.

Another resolution referred to the falling value of the Indian rupee against the US dollar and said the BJP has severely hurt the economy. “The DMK will never allow BJP’s communal designs to take shape in the state and will pay any price to uphold the Preamble of the Constitution,” it said.

The party announced state-wide protests against the government on September 18 and called for the dismissal of Dr. Vijayabaskar and removal of police chief Rajendran, on whose premises the CBI had conducted searches on Thursday in connection with the Gutka scam, relating to alleged payoffs by a manufacturer.
 
The meeting also demanded the immediate release of the seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, following a direction from the Supreme Court that the state Governor can consider the mercy plea of one of them, A G Perarivalan. The Tamil Nadu cabinet must meet immediately and adopt a resolution on the matter and send it to the Governor, the DMK demanded.