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In reaction to opposition charges that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is intentionally raking up the Kachchatheevu issue to increase its electoral prospects in Tamil Nadu ahead of the Lok Sabha elections, Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that there is never any proper or improper time to talk about national issues.
"There is no proper or improper time to discuss the Kachchatheevu issue since it is about our national rights. We got the information through RTI. For nearly 50 years a propaganda is been done against truth," Sitharaman said on Tuesday while participating at an informal interaction programme organized by 'Thinkers Forum.' In an attack at the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the Congress, who are in alliance in Tamil Nadu, Sitharaman said, "Both of them were in alliance then and now. Their propaganda is based on lies. The Congress despite being a national party, could not come to power in the state after 1968." The Union Finance Minister said that the Aksai Chin area was encroached upon when the Congress was in power in the Centre. "Did Karunanidhi oppose the Congress at that time. No. Whether elections are ongoing or not, this issue should be known to people," Sitharaman said. Hitting out at Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who is under judicial custody, Sitharaman said, "He was summoned nine times but he declined to appear before the Enforcement Directorate." Responding to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Stalin's allegation that the Centre did not release adequate funds to the state after floods, Sitharaman said, "We gave Rs 900 crores to the NDRF and SDRF even before floods." "For Chennai, we allotted Rs 5000 crore for underground drainage. If they had used it well, Chennai would not have been affected. When we asked on how it was spent, there was no response from them," the Finance Minister said. (ANI)
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