O. Panneerselvam, the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu asked his successor M.K Stalin to attend a NITI Aayog Governing Council meeting convened by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in New Delhi on Thursday, July 25, 2024. He requested Mr. Stalin during this gathering to put forward Tamil Nadu’s demands.
In a related statement, Mr. Panneerselvam revealed that Mr. Stalin would not be attending the gathering and said it was against the people of Tamil Nadu.
He also accused DMK of not trying to get education moved from the Concurrent List to State List or getting extra allocations for the state but opting for key cabinet positions instead over these 17 years.
“Participating in NITI Aayog meeting is only an appropriate way of presenting ourselves and requesting what we need from them in terms of development,” argued Panneerselvam while stressing that boycotting such an event would be wrong.
The ex-CM recalled that a five-judge panel had been formed by a Constitution Bench of Supreme Court on Mullaiperiyar issue between Kerala and Tamil Nadu in 2010. The then DMK Government did not specify its expert on the panel before refusing to participate as announced by it.
Jayalalithaa who was then AIADMK general secretary opposed this position suggesting whether that move will favor Kerala or not? Ultimately, retired SC Judge AR Lakshmanan was named TN member in the panel by DMK government. In this contest, Panneerselvam reminded about how in 2014 Tamilnadu received favorable ruling at Supreme Court level
