The ruling AIADMK continued its barbs against its former leader and AMMK founder TTV Dhinkaran in the Tamil Nadu assembly with a minister today slamming him for his criticism of the government over the Cauvery issue.
"He (Dhinakaran) was not even in our party for 10 years (as late party chief J Jayalalithaa had expelled him). How many times had he raised the Cauvery issue in the Parliament," he said during a debate in the Tamil Nadu Assembly.
Dhinakaran was not present in the house when the minister hit out at him.
He had been critical of the government's handling of the Cauvery issue, especially its approach in the court.
Velumani's criticism of Dhinakaran comes days after the House witnessed sharp exchange of words between Electricity Minister P Thangamani and the Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam leader over the issue of phased implementation of prohibition.
Dhinakaran had then staged a walkout after he was disallowed to respond to a veiled reference by Thangamani to an alcoholic beverages manufacturing company reportedly owned by the extended family of his aunt V K Sasikala.
Today, winding up the debate for the grants for his department, Velumani credited Chief Minister K Palaniswami with taking efforts for a verdict in the inter-state dispute that would be beneficial to the farmers of the state.
Acting on the Supreme Court's direction, the Centre on June 1 constituted the Cauvery Management Authority to address the dispute over sharing of river water among Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala and Puducherry and issued a gazette notification.
Velumani also said Palaniswami and deputy Chief Minister O Panneeselvam were "steering the party forward," ten months after the two leaders merged the respective factions led by them.
He announced a number of schemes, including integrated drinking water projects, that will be implemented in several parts of the state.
The Minister said 11 municipal corporations and 93 municipalities in the state have already been announced "open defecation free."
One more corporation and 31 municipalities will be added to the list by October this year, he added.
On the state government's key scheme of providing free laptops to school and college students, Velumani said over 37 lakh systems have been distributed from 2011-12 to 2016-17, at an overall cost of about Rs 5,500 crore.
The Minister, who also holds the Implementation of Special Programme portfolio under which the laptop scheme is covered, said the government intended to target 5.43 lakh students in 2017-18, at an allocation of Rs 758 crore.
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