Edappadi Palaniswami targets CM Vijay over office shift decision, farmers’ issues
AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday criticised Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, accusing the government of focusing on the Chief Minister’s office while farmers continued to face serious difficulties.
The remarks came during an AIADMK-led statewide protest demanding relief for farmers, including a complete waiver of crop loans. The party alleged that inadequate Cauvery water supply had contributed to drought-like conditions and affected Kuruvai paddy cultivation in the delta region.
Speaking at a demonstration near the Head Post Office in Thanjavur, Palaniswami questioned the decision to move the Chief Minister’s office to a more modern facility. He pointed out that several former chief ministers had worked from the official chamber at Fort St George.
Palaniswami argued that the government should give greater priority to farmers struggling with water shortages and difficult working conditions rather than concentrating on office arrangements. He called for agricultural loans to be waived to ease the financial pressure on cultivators.
Meanwhile, two senior AIADMK leaders, S P Velumani and Natham R Viswanathan, stayed away from Friday’s demonstrations after objecting to the party leadership’s decision to assign them protest duties outside their traditional political strongholds.
Velumani had been asked to lead the agitation in Theni, while Viswanathan was assigned Ramanathapuram. Both leaders had earlier said they would not leave their respective bases in Coimbatore and Dindigul for the protests.
The two had been among 25 AIADMK legislators who supported the TVK government during the May 13 floor test. Although the legislators later reconciled with Palaniswami amid concerns about disqualification, six eventually left the AIADMK and joined the TVK.