Chennai, April 7 Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Tuesday launched a scathing attack on Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, accusing him of attempting to blackmail voters by linking the approval of the Madurai Metro project to the election of a BJP legislator.
"Is it the job of the Maharashtra Chief Minister to bargain and blackmail, saying that Metro will be provided to Madurai only if a BJP MLA is elected?" Stalin posted on his official X account.
The strongly worded post further questioned the propriety of a sitting chief minister from another state visiting Tamil Nadu to engage in political bargaining.
Reacting to reported remarks that a Metro for Madurai would only be possible if a BJP MLA were elected, Stalin asked if it was the job of the Maharashtra chief minister to bargain and blackmail in such a manner.
Stalin further stated that a chief minister who has taken an oath under the Constitution should be ashamed to speak in such a manner while visiting an opposition-ruled state. He advised Fadnavis to familiarize himself with the developmental achievements of the Tamil Nadu government before making such statements.
Continuing his critique of the BJP’s "double-engine governance" rhetoric, Stalin referred to it as a "Dabba engine model", implying it is hollow or ineffective.
He highlighted that despite alleged neglect in fund allocation by the Union government, Tamil Nadu has achieved double-digit economic growth under the "Dravidian Model" government.
The Tamil Nadu government has submitted the Detailed Project Report for the metro project for the temple city, which was returned by the Union government along with the proposal for Coimbatore, stating that they do not meet the mandated two-million population criteria.