Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin accused the AIADMK of betraying the Muslim community by supporting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) while now attempting to win them over with Iftar parties. He criticized AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS), calling his participation in Muslim gatherings hypocritical given his past endorsement of the controversial law.
Stalin stated that the AIADMK played a key role in the passage of the CAA by supporting it in Parliament. “The CAA would not have been passed if the AIADMK had voted against it. However, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and its coalition allies firmly opposed it in public,” he said. He also recalled how Palaniswami, during his tenure as Chief Minister, dismissed legal concerns surrounding the CAA by asking, “Who has lost citizenship?”
Taking a dig at Palaniswami for attending an Iftar event, Stalin called it an act of political opportunism. “Minorities will never forget or forgive this betrayal. After acting against Muslims in times of crisis, some now participate in Iftar without any guilt or shame,” he remarked.
Stalin reaffirmed the DMK’s longstanding commitment to the Muslim community, emphasizing that his party has always defended their rights. “The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government, under our former Chief Minister, the late Karunanidhi, declared a government holiday for Milad-un-Nabi, which remains in force to this day. Just as Karunanidhi had a strong bond with Muslims and introduced several welfare schemes for them, we, the Dravidian model government, continue to follow the same path,” Stalin said.
