I don't want to give publicity to those indulging in cheap politics by talking about PTR tapes: Tamil Nadu CM MK Stalin

V MAYILVAGANAN: Breaking his silence on the controversy over 'PTR tapes’, the audio clips purportedly containing the voice of finance minister Palanivel Thiaga Rajan, chief minister M K Stalin has said he doesn’t want to talk about the tapes and give publicity to those indulging in “cheap politics”.
In his latest episode of question-answer format titled ‘Ungalil Oruvan’ (One among you), released on Tuesday, Stalin said PTR himself has issued a detailed clarification twice on the issue. Stalin’s remarks come more than a week after the audio clips surfaced on social media and a day after opposition leader Edappadi K Palaniswami questioned his silence. One of the audio clips was released by BJP state president K Annamalai.
In the clips, a voice purportedly that of PTR is heard making disparaging comments about Stalin’s family members accumulating wealth and praising BJP for its one leader, one posting policy. While PTR has rejected the tapes as fabricated, BJP and AIADMK have sought a forensic audit to establish the authenticity of the tapes.
Stalin has sought to put an end to the controversy over the tapes and also to speculations that PTR might be shunted out from the cabinet. Indicating that he did not accord much importance to the tapes, Stalin said he has time only to discharge his duties for people's welfare.
He said his government would probe the alleged irregularities during the AIADMK regime, which were exposed by CAG reports, tabled in the state assembly recently. Stalin said the government needed prior permissions and sanctions to take forward the probe according to certain amendments made in Prevention of Corruption Act 2018.
EPS, during a May Day event, attacked the DMK government as a `corruption-commission-collection' regime. “Accordingly, inquiries would be conducted and the corruption cases on AIADMK rulers would be taken to the court,” he said.
To another query on home minister Amit Shah, declaring that reservation for Muslims would be scrapped in Telangana once the BJP ‘assumed office’, Stalin hit out at the party, alleging that it reflected the saffron party’s hatred towards Muslims. He alleged that the home minister’s speech was a violation of the constitution.
“He (Amit Shah) has said it for electoral gains,” Stalin said. “BJP leaders imagine that Hindus would be satisfied only if they spew hatred towards Muslims. That is not true. Majority of the people, who don’t vote for BJP, are also Hindus,” he said. BJP wants to spread its hatred among a select few and then project that hatred as people’s opinion, he said. “But people are watching everything. We have trust in the people,” he said.
On completion of two years in office, Stalin said he was totally satisfied with the DMK government’s performance so far.
“In the last two years, we have fulfilled more than three-fourths of our poll promises. We have rolled out schemes which were not promised too,” he said.
The challenge, however, remains to set right the government machinery ‘ruined’ for 10 years by the previous AIADMK government, he said.