By IANS
Chennai : The battle of words between Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK and its ally PMK has intensified with senior leaders of both parties accusing each other of grabbing cultivable land.
On Monday, PMK founder S. Ramadoss targeted senior DMK leader and Electricity Minister Arcot M. Veerasamy over the acquisition of cultivable land near Thyagavalli village in Cuddalore district, about 400 km from here, for a private power station.
He accused Veerasamy of “lack of vision” and also alleged that the power plant was being set up by the minister’s relatives.
The PMK led people from 18 villages near Thyagavalli in a rally to demand that the government abandon the Rs.60 billion thermal power unit with a capacity of 1,320 MW and stop acquisition of cultivable land in that village.
“If a new thermal plant is set up, the local population would have no choice but to vacate their houses for good. We will extend full support if the thermal power units came up in the alternative places we have suggested,” Ramadoss said.
Veerasamy retaliated swiftly, saying that it was Ramadoss who had grabbed “cultivable land” for a university he was building in Tindivanam, for students of the Vanniya community, his political constituency.
He said Ramadoss and his party had taken 250 acres of prime land “on a lake front for building his university”.
“It seems Ramadoss is driven by an unquenchable desire to block all Kalaignar’s good schemes so people turn against the government. No one will, however, fall prey to Ramadoss’ designs,” Veerasamy said in a reference to Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, who is often called Kalaignar.
“Ramadoss wants to take Tamil Nadu to an age of darkness by blocking our government’s power projects,” he added, hinting that Ramadoss was doing this at the behest of AIADMK chief J. Jayalalitha.