Madurai
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Thursday questioned whether the Chief Minister’s recent London visit was genuinely aimed at attracting industrial investment or was merely a “pleasure trip,” speaking to reporters in Madurai.
He alleged that while the visit was projected as an investment outreach, the Chief Minister did not take along the minister and senior secretary of the concerned department, and instead travelled with officials he said were unrelated to the sector.
Referring to reports of a memorandum of understanding signed in London with “Mother Son” company, Palaniswami said the firm already has operations at 32 locations in Tamil Nadu, and asked why an MoU was signed abroad when an office exists in the State.
On the power situation, he pointed to what he called a contradiction between claims that there are no power cuts and the announcement that 2,000 MW of electricity would be purchased to bridge a shortfall.
Palaniswami also said the government had borrowed Rs 40,000 crore after coming to power and questioned the need for constructing a new Secretariat. He further alleged corruption had increased and rejected claims of a “secret relationship” between AIADMK and DMK, noting that the two parties contest against each other in by-elections. He added that people would teach the ruling party a lesson in the by-election.
