Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and AIADMK veteran S Semmalali shared the honours on the opening day of the discussion on the motion of thanks to the Governor’s address to the House which commenced in Tamil Nadu legislative Assembly on Monday. The Opposition DMK, in spite of its heavy lung power and concerted attacks on the treasury benches, were exposed of its double standards on various issues by Jayalalithaa.
The Chief Minister, as a mark of respect to Munusamy, the slain police head constable of Hosur Poilce station, announced a solatium of
Rs1 crore to his family. Munusamy (45) was killed last week while he was trying to catch a gang of robbers engaged in chain-snatching. He was trying to apprehend the dacoits when he was stabbed by one of the gang members. Jayalalithaa said she had instructed the Chief Secretary to hike the financial aid being given to policemen who get killed and sustain injuries during acts of valour. In addition to this, the Chief Minister also disclosed that her Government would bear the entire higher educational expenses of Rakshana, daughter of Munusamy.
While moving the motion of thanks, Semmalai, known for his tongue-in-the-cheek retorts as well as repartee, referred to DMK supremo M Karunanidhi’s comments about the Governor’s speech. “Karunanidhi said the Governor’s address to the House was contradictory in nature. But Karunanidhi himself is a personification of contradiction. His stance on Cauvery, Nokia and even Sanskrit are contradictory,” pointed out semmalali which brought the Opposition to its feet. leader of the Opposition MK Stalin and his deputy Durai Pandian wanted the comments by Semmalai to be expunged from the records.
Even as Semmalai was about to wind up his speech, he saw Chief Minister Jayalalithaa entering the House. This made him bring in another instance of Karunanidhi’s “double-standard”. “The AIADMK supremo (Jayalalithaa) was asked to select two names of leaders from the State whose statures were to be installed in Parliament premises, she chose CN Annadurai and MGR. But do you know whom did Karunanidhi choose for this honourIJ His own nephew Murasoli Maran,” said Semmalai even as the House echoed with shouts of “shame”.
Speaker of the House P Dhanapal was on his feet for most of the time to control and pacify the DMK members. Jayalalithaa, who intervened in the proceedings when the issue of Katchatheevu came up during the discussion, stated with facts and figures that the then ruling DMK neither protested or did nothing to retrieve the islet when it was handed over on a platter to the sri lankan government by the then Congress government in 1974.
lambasting the DMK for ceding the Katchatheevu to Sri lanka, she said Karunanidhi’s party did nothing in the issue despite being part of the ruling dispensation in the Centre for more than nine years. “Though I was in the Opposition, I filed a case in the Supreme Court in my personal capacity as the General secretary of the AIADMK.to retrieve the islet from Sri lanka so that the fishermen in Tamil Nadu could continue with fishing in their traditional waters,” said the Chief Minister.