DMK desperately trying to counter BJP's rise in TN: ANS Prasad

Chennai, Dec 23 (IANS) Tamil Nadu BJP spokesperson and senior leader A.N.S. Prasad said the ruling DMK was desperately trying to counter the growth of the BJP in the state.

He said that by adopting resolutions that levelled false accusations against the Modi government at the Centre, the DMK has acknowledged that the BJP is its main rival in the state.

Prasad said that DMK’s executive committee acknowledges that the political landscape in Tamil Nadu has shifted to a 'DMK vs BJP' narrative.

The senior leader said the DMK will face a crushing defeat in the 2026 Assembly elections, similar to its defeat in 2011.

ANS Prasad said that the DMK executive committee meeting held on Sunday (December 22) was an annual ritual to sing praises of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.

The BJP leader said that like every other executive committee meeting, this one also ended as a glorification session for the Stalin family.

During the meeting, Chief Minister Stalin claimed that the DMK would form the government for the seventh time, while Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin boasted that the party would win over 200 seats, Prasad said.

The BJP leader said that ever since the DMK fell under the control of Karunanidhi's family, it has never won consecutive elections unless opposition parties were fractured or failed to form strong alliances.

The Tamil Nadu BJP spokesperson said that the DMK's recent electoral success can be attributed to internal conflicts within opposing alliances and unrealistic false election promises, as well as false propaganda about central government schemes, which ultimately benefited the party.

Prasad said, “This will not be the case in the 2026 Assembly elections. A strong alliance will emerge to defeat the DMK, making the claims of the "father-son duo" about forming the government again or winning over 200 seats nothing more than daydreams."

He alleged that in the last three and a half years of DMK rule, corruption has been rampant, from obtaining school certificates to getting any work done in government offices, nothing is possible without paying bribes.

The BJP leader said that Law and order has deteriorated significantly in Tamil Nadu

He said that in Vellore, a BJP worker who questioned corruption was brutally murdered by a DMK-affiliated panchayat leader.

Prasad said that in Tirunelveli, a person was killed in broad daylight on court premises.

He said the DMK government continued to burden the people with increases in electricity tariffs, property taxes, and milk prices.

He said that the DMK has no chance of returning to power and added that DMK made similar bold claims during its 2006-2011 tenure, asserting that they would return to power but in the 2011 Assembly elections, the DMK couldn’t even secure the status of the Opposition.

Prasad said that the same fate awaits the DMK in the 2026 elections and that he did not have any doubt about this.

The BJP leader said that at the executive committee meeting, the DMK passed resolutions opposing 'One Nation, One Election,' condemning Union Home Minister Amit Shah, criticizing the auction of tungsten mines in Madurai, and opposing the Vishwakarma scheme, among others.

He said that this meeting was aimed at countering the BJP and indicates that the DMK itself recognises that the political contest in Tamil Nadu has become a direct fight between the DMK and BJP.

ANS Prasad said that the unresolved fisherman's issue is a direct result of the DMK and Congress governments handing over Katchatheevu to Sri Lanka.

He added, “Tamil Nadu fishermen and the public will never forgive the DMK for silently allowing this to happen. Even when the UPA, of which the DMK was a part, held power at the Centre from 1996 to 2004, they did nothing to reclaim Katchatheevu."

Prasad said, "Now the DMK’s organising secretary, R.S. Bharathi, claims that the party opposed the handover of Katchatheevu -- something the people will never believe."

He said the resolutions passed by the DMK executive committee show that the party is trying to project the central BJP government as working against Tamil Nadu’s interests.

Prasad said,“ They believe that creating anti-BJP sentiment among the public will lead to electoral victory. But this strategy will fail."

He added that in the upcoming Assembly elections, the DMK will face a humiliating defeat, much like in 2011, and may not even qualify for Opposition status.

He said that the DMK's fear stems from the Modi government's welfare schemes gaining traction in Tamil Nadu, threatening to upend the DMK's divisive and casteist rule.

The DMK's efforts to discredit the Modi government through false propaganda have failed, and its attempts to create unrest in the state have been unsuccessful, ANS Prasad said.

He said that the DMK's resolution was a thinly veiled attempt to divert attention from its anti-people governance and its desperation to cling to power.

"The people of Tamil Nadu will see through the DMK's tactics and continue to support the Modi government's development agenda," Prasad said.