Will felicitate TN CM if investment realisation happens

Taking potshots at Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami for claiming to have got huge investment commitments from the US, DMK chief M K Stalin on Thursday said his party was ready to hold a meet to felicitate him if such proposals saw the light of the day.

Citing the total investment commitments of about Rs five lakh crore from the two global investors meet (GIM 2015 and 2019) organised by the AIADMK government in Chennai, he alleged such proposals in the first place have not been realised.

Under such circumstances, Palaniswami claimed on Wednesday in the US during his ongoing foreign tour that he has got Rs 2,780 crore investments, Stalin said at an event here.

The government said on Thursday it has received Rs 2,300 crore more investment commitments and the total value of the deals clinched during the ongoing tour of Palaniswami to America has risen to Rs 5,080 crore.

"If such investments happen, we welcome and appreciate it; if these commitments are realised, we are ready to hold a meet to felicitate the Chief Minister, but is this (investment commitments) true?" he asked.

Referring to the economic slowdown and growth going down to 5 per cent in the three months ended June, he said industries in Coimbatore and Tirupur corridor were also witnessing a decline.

Alleging investments to Tamil Nadu have not come through, he claimed Palaniswami's foreign tour was to divert people's attention from key issues being faced in the State.

Pointing to Palaniswami's remarks in the US on the two editions of GIM, investments of Rs five lakh crore and 220 firms commencing activities in Tamil Nadu, Stalin alleged, "this is a blatant lie; which company has begun operation in which place? We have been demanding a white paper over this." The Leader of the Opposition also taunted Palaniswami for his foreign tour along with his ministerial colleagues saying the Chief Minister's Cabinet was a "touring Cabinet."

Palaniswami embarked on a three-nation tour on August 28 including America to promote Tamil Nadu and attract investments and he is set to return on September 10.