Edappadi upset at my popularity, says Chief Minister Stalin

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin highlights his hands-on approach to governance, instilling confidence in the people and unsettling the opposition.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin said on Friday that the huge reception accorded to him by people at various places had given the jitters to AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami.

Speaking at a function organised at Ariyalur to inaugurate development projects in Ariyalur and Perambalur districts, Mr. Stalin said he was not a Chief Minister who rested after announcing schemes and allotting funds, leaving the implementation in the hands of officials .

There were “some people” in the past who knew nothing about the day-to-day affairs of governance. There was a situation in which rulers came to know the happenings through television. They would not even react even if they came to know of the issues, he said, indirectly targeting the Leader of the Opposition.

On the contrary, he designed the schemes that would benefit the people and made field visits to check out their implementation, Mr. Stalin said. Moreover, he made it a point to complete the schemes within the stipulated time. This instilled confidence in the people that the Chief Minister would take action if memoranda were submitted to him. “This is the reason why people are giving me a rousing reception wherever I go. The confidence reposed in me will never go waste and I will keep the promises made to the people,” he said.

The confidence reposed in him and the DMK by the people was disturbing Mr. Palaniswami who feared that he would be forgotten. This forced him to meet the media daily to unleash “bags of lies” against the government. The people would not believe any of it, Mr. Stalin said.

“Mr. Palaniswami claims that the State attracted ₹3 lakh crore in investment at the Global Investors Meet he had hosted. Can he list the number of companies that had actually opened their units and plants and the number of persons they had hired,” Mr. Stalin asked. The reality was that many companies had closed operations and moved out of the State owing to corruption. There was a period when the people were longing for an end to the AIADMK rule led by Mr. Palaniswami, he said.

However, the DMK government brought the companies back to the State and ushered in a revolution. It attracted investment to the tune of ₹10 lakh crore, giving direct and indirect employment to 31 lakh people. The government was making sincere efforts to prompt the companies that had signed memoranda of understanding with the government to start their units as early as possible. He himself had been inaugurating these units. It was an example of good governance. The people now considered the Dravidian model of government as their rule, and it would remain forever.