The Union BJP government had been continuously inflicting injustice on Tamil Nadu by refusing to accept the state’s rightful demands such as exemption from NEET, recognition of Keezhadi’s antiquity, fairness in fund devolution, release of education funds, and so on: Chief Minister M K Stalin
CHENNAI: Pledging DMK's support to B Sudhershan Reddy, who was chosen as the Vice-Presidential candidate of the Opposition INDIA Bloc at a meeting of the leaders of the alliance, including the DMK, at New Delhi on Tuesday, Chief Minister M K Stalin wholeheartedly congratulated him, debunking the State BJP and AIADMK leaders’ demand for supporting a Tamilian.
Describing Reddy as a jurist of integrity and independence and as a champion of civil liberties and social justice, Stalin said, in his message on X that he had upheld constitutional values throughout his career.
Reddy was someone who could create space for constructive debates in Parliament, conduct the House giving rightful place to the voice of the opposition and as a democrat who had faith in the Constitution and in the principles of federalism, pluralism, social justice and linguistic rights, opposing anti-federalism, authoritarianism, and the trend of spreading hatred, he said.
The decision to support the candidature of Reddy stood as both a reaffirmation of the people’s faith and a mark of respect for their mandate and sentiment, he said, adding that the secular-spirited people of Tamil Nadu had, in successive elections, overwhelmingly voted for the MPs and MLAs of the DMK alliance to defend the rights of the State and safeguard the Constitution.
The DMK had been consistently and vociferously raising its voice in Parliament against the unconstitutional denial of State rights, the centralization of power in the Union, the rising tide of hate propaganda, and the relentless imposition of Hindi and Sanskrit — all of which dig a grave for the Constitution and attempt to bury it, Stalin said.
At a time when our institutions were under strain, Reddy’s candidature strengthened our collective resolve to safeguard democracy and protect the spirit of the Constitution, Stalin said, expressing concern over all the independent institutions meant to safeguard Indian democracy turning into subsidiary bodies of the ruling party and putting the Constitution itself in danger.
In such a situation, the responsibility was to support only the one who believed in India’s fundamental ideals of secularism, federalism, social justice, and unity in diversity, he said
The Union BJP government had been continuously inflicting injustice on Tamil Nadu by refusing to accept the state’s rightful demands such as exemption from NEET, recognition of Keezhadi’s antiquity, fairness in fund devolution, release of education funds, and so on, he said.
Through Governors, the Union BJP government had been running a parallel government and blocking the functioning of State governments, while also engaging in efforts to weaken institutions of higher education, he charged.
