DMK-AIADMK spar over Farm Bills in Parliament

Tamil Nadu’s ruling AIADMK and principal opposition DMK are involved in a war of words over the former’s support to two bills relating to farmers in Parliament.

While Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami issued a long statement on Saturday supporting the Bills and terming them as “good” for the farming community, his party member, SR Balasubramanian, spoke against the bills in Rajya Sabha on Sunday.

The party, which has just one member in Lok Sabha, supported the Bills in the lower house of Parliament. AIADMK’s stand of supporting the Bill in Lok Sabha and opposing it in Rajya Sabha prompted DMK President M K Stalin to seek an apology to the people on different stands on one issue.

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“The AIADMK’s support to Farmers’ Bills is the worst of the things that have so far been taken by Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami. The only way out for him is to issue an open apology before the people admitting that he supported the Bill only to save his government and escape from corruption cases,” Stalin said in a statement on Sunday.

AIADMK’s support in Rajya Sabha came after the party came under severe criticism for its stand in the lower house of Parliament. The party’s stand in the upper house of Parliament after Palaniswami issued a statement rebutting Stalin’s statement on Saturday in which the Opposition Leader accused the AIADMK of betraying farmers’ interests.

In his statement on Saturday, Palaniswami had questioned Stalin why his party, DMK, had supported similar legislation which was piloted by former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.

"There is no provision in the bill to force the farmers or aspects that would affect them," Palaniswami said, adding that he was always a “proud farmer.”