She may no longer be the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. She was disqualified as a member of the Tamil Nadu legislative Assembly in September 2014 because of her conviction and sentencing by the Bangalore Special Court for four years imprisonment and a fine of Rs100 crore in the disproportionate wealth case. But Tamil Nadu Governor Rosaiah has complimented AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalithaa for her services to the State. Though the AIADMK chief is no longer a member of the House, the Governor’s customary address was full of praise for Jayalalithaa and the pro-poor schemes launched during her tenure.
“I must place on record my heartfelt appreciation to Selvi J Jayalalithaa for her relentless pursuit and untiring efforts to secure the legitimate rights of the State in various inter-State river water disputes. It is only because of her perseverance and courage that the State could secure a historic verdict from the Supreme Court declaring the Mullai Periyar Dam as hydrologically, structurally and seismically safe, thereby enabling the State of Tamil Nadu to raise the water level to 142 feet,” said the Governor at the outset of his speech.
While complimenting and praising Jayalalithaa, the Governor congratulated Narendra Modi Government for abolishing the Planning Commission and setting up NITI Aayog. “This Government welcomes the decision of the Government of India to abolish the Union Planning Commission, which has lost its relevance in the current context and to replace it with the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. This Government has always advocated an increased role for States in the development of the nation. I hope that the new institution will foster the spirit of co-operative federalism with the active participation of all the Chief Ministers of the States and Union Territories in its Governing Council,” said Rosaiah.
The Governor described the various pro-poor people schemes named after Amma which according to him played a major role in the AIADMK registering massive wins in the 2014 lok Sabha election and the by-election held to the Assembly from Srirangam on February 13 which too was won by the AIADMK. Even as the Tamil Nadu Government welcomed the initiatives to inter-link the major Indian rivers, it warned the Union Government in the amendment to the Constitution as part of the introduction of the GST without taking the States into confidence.