Chief Minister MK Stalin, who will be leaving for Delhi on the morning of June 17 for a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has been placed under Z+ scale category security due to threats from religious fundamentalists.
Chennai:
As per the official tour programme released on Wednesday, the Chief Minister is facing threat from religious fundamentalists, Tamil chauvinists and disgruntled elements and has been placed on +Z+ Scale Category of Security. Stalin will leave for Delhi at 7:30 am by a special flight and reach Delhi at 10 am. During his visit, he would be staying at the Tamil Nadu House.
He would meet Modi at 5 pm and submit the memorandum on various issues concerning the State, including handing over to Tamil Nadu the Integrated Vaccine Complex set up by HLL Bio-Tech Limited in Chengalpattu on lease for vaccine production and the need to speed up the AIIMS project in Madurai, banning NEET from TN, among others.
As per reports, this being his first visit to Delhi after becoming the Chief Minister, Stalin is also expected to meet President Ram Nath Kovind, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu and several Union Ministers. He will also call on DMK’s alliance party leaders, including Congress President and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Congress MP Rahul Gandhi, CPI and CPM leaders. He is also likely to visit the DMK party office there.
All DMK MPs reach Delhi ahead of Stalin’s visit to meet PM Modi
Over two dozen Member of Parliament of the ruling DMK have converged at New Delhi ahead of Chief Minister MK Stalin’s visit to the national capital. Stalin would be meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Delhi around 10 30 am on Thursday (June 17), first since he assumed office on May 7.
All MPs of the party have reached the national capital for what DMK insiders believe would be a political show of strength by Stalin, whose party is the third largest in the Lok Sabha. In fact, DMK general secretary cum state Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan has also camped in Delhi for the CM’s meeting with the PM.
A couple of other DMK Ministers were also learnt to have planned to accompany the Chief Minister, who is expected to submit a wish list to the Prime Minister. The wish list would comprise crucial issues like scrapping/exempting Tamil Nadu from NEET, GST reform, withdrawal of hydrocarbon extraction bid and allocation of more vaccines/drugs for COVID/mucormycosis.
The DMK, which has been consciously avoiding confrontation with the ruling BJP since assuming office last month, expects the BJP to respond favourably given its current strength in the Upper House, where its numbers are set to increase in the coming weeks.
Vijayan takes charge in Delhi
Meanwhile, former Nagapattinam MP AKS Vijayan on Wednesday took charge as Tamil Nadu special representative at Delhi a day ahead of the CM’s visit. Appointment and assumption of office of the Tamil Nadu special representative was crucial as the representative, whose rank is equivalent to a state Minister, would be the official liaison between the Union and state government. Vijayan, who was elected to the Lok Sabha twice from Nagapattinam, would do the crucial job of fixing appointments with the PMO and liaising for the state government in the national capital. Stalin would also meet ally Congress leaders Sonia and Rahul Gandhi on June 18 during his two-day visit.
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