Sivakasi: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday lashed out at the DMK government over the law and order situation and claimed there was no safety for women and police in Tamil Nadu.
Speaking at an election rally seeking votes for party candidates for the April 23 polls, Palaniswami said soon after his government assumes office post the elections, it would eradicate “ganja trafficking” within three months.
The AIADMK chief also assured support for the firework and match industries in the district.
He slammed the DMK government for stalling the Cauvery-Gundar river linking project and asserted that his party would implement it once it forms a government. Referring to the establishment of a medical college and hospital at an outlay of Rs 400 crore in Virudhunagar district during the previous AIADMK government, he said the DMK took credit for the project.
Observing that Sivakasi is famous not only in Tamil Nadu, but globally for its fireworks industry, he said the match industry operates excellently here. “When the firework industry faced a crisis while I was the chief minister, I led a committee of 20 MPs to meet the union minister to demand that the sale of fireworks should not be banned,” he said.
Palaniswami was seeking votes for its party candidates Rajendhra Balaji, Rajavarman, Chandraprabha, Ganesan and Sethupathi.
He was also campaigning for alliance party candidate Priscilla Jebaraj of Tamilaga Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam, who is contesting in BJP’s Lotus symbol.
Palaniswami recalled that it was the AIADMK that “voiced” in court to save the fireworks industry. “Thousands of people work in these industries, and there are many farmers and printing press workers here. If the AIADMK government is formed again, these industries will
be protected,” he said.