Palaniswami lashes out at DMK, Cong over Mekedatu row
AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Sunday lashed out at the ruling Congress in Karnataka and the DMK in Tamil Nadu over the neighbouring state pushing for the construction of the contentious Mekedatu reservoir and the Stalin-led government not putting up a resistance to protect the interests of the state.
Palaniswami especially came down hard on Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin, charging him with not fiercely opposing Karnataka Deputy CM D K Shivakumar’s assertion that the balancing reservoir would be built on river Cauvery at Mekedatu in the neighbouring state.
Tamil Nadu is opposed to the construction of the dam, saying its prospects will be hurt, and also insists that its consent is required to implement the project. Palaniswami, Leader of Opposition in the State Assembly, said that due to his previous government’s efforts in 2018, the Mekedatu issue was never discussed in the meetings of the Cauvery Management Authority (CMA).
The CMA had said that Tamil Nadu’s consent was required for the project, and the state would intervene in the matter as the reservoir is proposed to come up on the Cauvery river bed, he stated.
”Following this, the Mekedatu issue remained calm till May this year. But, after the Congress government came in Karnataka (in May), Deputy CM Shivakumar is blowing up the matter saying the dam will certainly be constructed,” the AIADMK chief said in a statement.