‘It is shameful that there was no reference to T.N. in Budget speech’
DMK MP T.R. Baalu on Saturday said it was shameful that Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who was born in Tamil Nadu, failed to make a reference to the State in her Budget speech.
Addressing a demonstration organised by the DMK to condemn the “step-motherly treatment” meted out to Tamil Nadu in the Union Budget, Mr. Baalu said there was no allocation for the ₹63,000-crore Chennai Metro Rail project that would boost the economy and benefit the people.
While the Tamil Nadu government made its contribution to the project, the Centre has not allotted funds, he said, adding: “The money [that is to be allotted] is not yours. It is the taxpayers’ money, and it should be shared with the States. Tamil Nadu should have received a share of 42%…”
Mr. Baalu further said the DMK and its allies would form the government at the Centre before the project was completed, and would ensure that adequate funds were allotted.
In Madurai, the demonstration was led by DMK MLA K. Thalapathi. Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Tamil Nadu many times during the election, but did not bother to allocate adequate funds for the projects in the State, he said.
The DMK’s platform speaker Dindigul Leoni alleged that the BJP government had betrayed Tamil Nadu and said: “There is no building for the AIIMS in Madurai yet. The students have almost completed their course at a State government medical college in Ramanathapuram. In Thoothukudi, MP Kanimozhi led the protests. In Tiruchi, the central and north district units of the DMK organised protests in front of the Collectorate. District secretaries S. Vairamani and Thiyagarajan led the demonstrations. Several DMK leaders, including Mayor M. Anbazhagan, MLAs S. Kathiravan and S. Stalin Kumar, and District Panchayat Council Chairman Dharman Rajendran, addressed the gathering.
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