Chennai: Thambidurai asks Ponnar to introspect, says Minister retaliates

Chennai: Lok Sabha deputy Speaker M. Thambidurai retaliated to Union minister of state for Finance and shipping Pon Radhakrishnan’s advise asking him to “introspect” for ‘casually’ criticising the BJP-led government at the Centre and said the central minister too should ‘introspect’ if he was fair in censuring the AIADMK on various issues.

“This is a democratic country. Even Ponnar has criticised our government on many occasions and he went to the extent of remarking that Dravidian parties should not exist and claimed Tamil Nadu had not seen progress because of the Dravidian parties’ rule. He expressed his views and we too have expressed our views. Let him also introspect. We know the extent of people’s support for our government,” Thambidurai said.

He also justified his allegation (on October 30 in Karur) that the Centre had held back several hundred crore of rupees due for Tamil Nadu and as a result the State government was unable to execute development work.

Reacting to this, Radhakrishnan said on Wednesday that Mr. Thambidurai appears to lay “supine and talk.” “He is able to express freely because of the freedom ensured by the Centre… Thambidurai enjoys the freedom to express his views. No other government in the past had ensured such freedom. He should introspect.”

On Thursday, Radhakrishnan said he had no personal enmity on either the AIADMK or the DMK. He was indulging in constructive criticism for the well-being of Tamil Nadu.

Meanwhile, Fisheries Minister D. Jayakumar said as far as his party was considered the DMK is its opponent not a ‘distant relative’ as Radhakrishnan claimed.