Tamil Nadu finance minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan also refuted he made any remarks against CM MK Stalin’s son Udhayanidhi and son-in-law V Sabareesan. (Image: ANI/File)
Tamil Nadu finance minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan released a video denying claims that it was his voice in the clip and said it was a “desperate attempt… to achieve political ambitions by creating rift within DMK”
A day after Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai released an audio clip claiming that the voice in it was of Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, the state finance minister rubbished it and called it a “vain attempt to cast aspersions” on chief minister MK Stalin’s son Udhayanidhi Stalin and son-in-law V Sabareesan.
Rajan, popularly known as PTR, released a video and said the BJP had stooped to a “base level of politics”. “I strongly and specifically deny having said to any individual personally or on the phone at any point of time, what is contained in the audio clip being circulated on social media since yesterday the source of which nobody accepts ownership of. The state president of the BJP has descended to posting an audio of somebody telling nobody about some others. This is the base level of his politics,” he said.
Annamalai had released a 57-second audio clip, claiming that the voice in it was PTR’s. In the clip, the person is heard saying: “The party which is the CM’s son and son-in-law…”
On Wednesday, he tweeted a thread in which he called Stalin’s family as the DMK’s “first family”. He alleged that this “first family” had compelled a “highly educated man” such as PTR to parrot the CM’s son’s praises like the rest of the party. He tweeted: “It is also evident from his clarification of how DMK has evolved to become a party that doesn’t think beyond the first family. (2/5)”
In his tweets, Annamalai also said he was ready to face the law to prove that it was PTR’s voice in the audio clip.
“No country can progress if its politics is more profitable than its industries. In a country where those in government are richer than entrepreneurs, they manufacture poverty” – A quote that best suits the DMK politicians. (1/5) pic.twitter.com/pq4GZ2GaAv
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) April 26, 2023
In his video, however, PTR called Udayanidhi an outstanding performer while Sabareesan was his “trusted adviser”. “Honourable sports minister Thiru Udhayanidhi is our hope for the next generation and has received great reception from the Tamil people. Of the many who urged his elevation to the state cabinet based on his appeal as a youth icon, I was among the foremost. His outstanding performance as a minister has surpassed all our expectations. He is also a hands-on and grassroots administrator, very much in keeping with the style of our honourable chief minister. He is making Tamil Nadu the centre of attention of the international sports world. How is it possible that I could say anything negative about such an outstanding performer… From my first days in public life, Thiru Sabareesan has always been my most trusted adviser, guide and pillar of support. Even opposition parties have not laid accusations against Thiru Udayanidhi and Thiru Sabareesan. Therefore, such fabricated audios are being generated in a vain attempt to cast aspersions on them…” he said.
The minister once again said attempts to divide the party through “fabricated” audios will not succeed. “There is a desperate attempt by a blackmail gang to achieve their political ambitions by creating a rift within us (DMK). Such cowardly attempts will never succeed. Since the inception of the DMK, all of us have lived together as one movement, one party and one extended family, and we will always continue to do so,” he added.
Read all the Latest Politics News here
