By Xinhua
Chennai : The Supreme Court’s stay on the shutdown called by Tamil Nadu’s ruling DMK in support of the Sethusamudram shipping canal project was “the greatest victory for the people”, AIDMK chief J. Jayalalitha said Sunday.
In a statement, the leader of the opposition demanded the dismissal of the DMK government saying the strike call that was stayed and the protest fast the DMK had called for in its place Monday were “a Goebbelsian attempt to divert the attention of the people”.
The Supreme Court ruling followed an AIADMK petition that had opposed Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s call for a statewide strike call.
The strike had been called to urge the central government to get the Supreme Court to vacate its stay on the construction of the Sethusamudram project in the sea dividing India and Sri Lanka.
After the Supreme Court stay, Karunanidhi announced plans to go on day-long fast along with his cabinet colleagues and leaders of allied parties.
Jayalalitha alleged that the chief minister was pressing for the project “only for personal profiteering of the Karunanidhi family”.
Urging the central government to consider an alternative alignment for the proposed canal, she said the DMK’s protests amounted to “contempt of the Supreme Court”.