Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin.
Credit: PTI
Chennai: BJP-led Union Government’s systematic blocking of Tamil Nadu’s progress through its biased approach in allocating funds, refusal to grant metro rail network for Coimbatore and Madurai, and the Governor delaying his approval to a bill on establishment of an university after M Karunanidhi, are some of the issues that DMK will raise in the winter session of Parliament.
The decision to raise about 10 issues was taken at a meeting of MPs chaired by party chief M K Stalin here on Saturday. Stalin, in a social media post after the meeting, sought to know whether it was right for the Union Government to ignore the voice of the people of Tamil Nadu while proudly claiming to be the largest democracy.
“It is not fair to turn a deaf ear to the demands and needs of Tamil Nadu, even when presented through letters, in-person petitions, and legislative assembly resolutions. No one with a conscience would accept the betrayal of Tamil Nadu, a state that contributes the highest tax revenue,” he said.
The party said the DMK MPs will insist that the four Labour Codes must not harm workers' rights and seek exemption for the state’s superior unorganized welfare boards, and find a permanent solution for the rights of Tamil Nadu fishermen amid arrests by the Sri Lankan Navy.
“This meeting expresses strong condemnation of the Union BJP government, which systematically blocks Tamil Nadu people's progress, denies flagship schemes for the state, stalls even announced ones, and creates a dark chapter in Centre-state administrative cooperation,” one of the resolutions passed at the meeting said.
The DMK said its MPs will seek the personal intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in approving metro networks to Madurai and Coimbatore. Another resolution recalled that while the proposals by the TN government were rejected citing population criterion but approved such projects for cities like Agra.
The MPs will also raise the issue of delay in approvals for several infrastructure projects in the state.