Palaniswami slams Stalin for terming ex-AIADMK ministers as 'offenders'

Chennai, July 12  AIADMK General Secretary and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, on Wednesday slammed Chief Minister M.K. Stalin in terming former AIADMK ministers as offenders.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, the AIADMK leader said that in a recent letter to the President of India, Stalin mentioned former AIADMK ministers as ‘offenders’.

In his letter to President Draupadi Murmu, Stalin referred to the former AIADMK ministers, “M.R. Vijayabaskar, K.C. Veeramani, C. Vijayabaskar, and B.V. Ramana”, as offenders.

Palaniswami said in a statement that the cases foisted by the DMK government against the former AIADMK ministers have not been investigated yet.

He also asked Stalin to appoint honest and non-political lawyers as public prosecutors in the pending cases against sitting DMK ministers as well as former AIADMK ministers. He warned that once the AIADMK returns to power, the cases will be reopened.

Palaniswami also alleged that the previous Jayalalithaa-led AIADMK government had registered cases against 50 per cent of previous DMK ministers and the DMK men did not cooperate with the probe and had gone into hiding for 10 years seeking adjournments after adjournments.

He said that several former DMK ministers are now getting relief after party lawyers were put up as public prosecutors, adding that the people of Tamil Nadu will teach a fitting lesson to DMK in the 2024 general elections.

The AIADMK General Secretary also alleged that Law Minister S. Regupathy, who also holds the portfolio of Prevention of Corruption, should first clear the corruption charges against him by engaging non-political lawyers.