DMK president M.K. Stalin said there was no truth in the allegation that his party was anti-Hindu. “The BJP, the RSS and Hindu Munnani seek to portray the DMK as anti-Hindu. That is not the truth. In fact, there is no temple which is not visited by my wife. Many district secretaries of the DMK sport kumkum on their forehead and we do not criticise their faith,” he said, while participating in the Pongal festival in Konambedu in Thiruvallur district.
He said the DMK always followed the dictum of ‘one god, one race’ propounded by party founder C.N. Annadurai. “Any smear campaign against the DMK will not cut ice with the people and it will be proved in the forthcoming Assembly election,” Mr. Stalin said.
Reacting to CM Edappadi K. Palaniswami’s claim that he rose in politics gradually, Mr. Stalin said by making that statement he had insinuated that others had used family connections for their rise.
“I have been in politics for 50 years. Do you think that I achieved position because of my father? He himself had acknowledged my hard work. That is enough and I do not want a certificate from Mr. Palaniswami,” he said.
Mr. Stalin said he climbed the ladder doing party work and held posts of youth wing secretary, deputy general secretary, treasurer, working president before reaching the position of party president.
“I was elected as mayor of Chennai two times. Before me, mayors were elected by councillors and I was the first mayor elected by all sections of the society,” he said.
