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Launching a scathing attack on the Congress party over Karnataka Chief Minister DK Shivakumar's declaration that "no one can stop" the construction of the Mekedatu dam, Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy on Saturday alleged a calculated conspiracy between the Karnataka and Tamil Nadu units of the Congress party to exploit sensitive regional sentiments for political expediency.
Speaking to ANI, Thirupathy said, "Congress is playing a big drama as far as Mekedatu is concerned. Both Manickam Tagore and DK Shivakumar, and Rahul Gandhi, all are playing politics with Tamil Nadu. It is a conspiracy of Congress, Karnataka Congress, and Tamil Nadu Congress." "Being in power in Karnataka, the Chief Minister of Karnataka DK Shivakumar is playing a very big drama to hide the internal problems of Karnataka Congress in their rule, their government and trying to instigate this Cauvery issue... The Congress, they are also in the government in Tamil Nadu, trying to play a hide and seek game. It's a big conspiracy by Congress creating enmity between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, thus creating a big problem," the BJP leader remarked. Emphasising that the lower riparian state holds absolute legal standing, Thirupathy added, "The government of Tamil Nadu should condemn this. Nobody can build the Mekedatu dam without the consent of the Tamil Nadu government. No one has the right to do this. I again strongly condemn Congress for playing with the sentiments of two states." All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) national spokesperson Kovai Sathyan also accused the Karnataka CM of distorting judicial verdicts to suit his narrative. "We recommend DK Shivakumar to the Nobel Prize for lying. He can be crowned as the biggest liar under the earth. And misquoting the judgment of Supreme Court and taking the name of Supreme Court to suit his political narrative is highly condemnable. This intention seems to be that there should be a bloodbath between two states so that he can be a political scavenger doing his political narrative on top of it," Sathyan told ANI. Warning of judicial recourse against the statement, Sathyan asserted, "There is no need for him to make such statements in front of a Prime Minister and misquoting the Supreme Court and the judgment... We will definitely take this up legally and by going by the legal norms, he can definitely be put behind bars." The AIADMK spokesperson further accused the Congress of harbouring double standards regarding the inter-state water sharing issue. "Congress has got selective amnesia and selective enlightenments. They get selective enlightenments. The same remark DK Shivakumar made when Congress were in ally with DMK. Congress were not to be seen anywhere in Tamil Nadu condemning DK Shivakumar at that point of time. Now they have jumped the ship. Because of their political bargaining, they got two ministers and cabinet berths now... This selective outrage is nothing but trying to hide the incompetence of CM Vijay," Sathyan added. The remarks come after Shivakumar, earlier today, reiterated his commitment to construct the Mekedatu dam, declaring that the project is a state right and asserting that the state will not back down from safeguarding its interests. The Mekedatu project is Karnatakas right, and it is our duty to implement it in accordance with the Supreme Courts directive. We will not back down at any stage when it comes to safeguarding the interests of our state... Anyone is free to oppose it, but Tamil Nadu must also recognise that this is our state and our right. If they wish, let them send a delegation. I am prepared to take them to the dam site and walk them through the project. What is happening there is purely politicsif the Congress doesn't oppose it, the DMK will; if the DMK doesn't, the AIADMK will. However, this is not a political matter. Everyone must respect the law of the land and abide by the Supreme Courts order, he said. We bear the responsibility of protecting the water share due to Tamil Nadu, just as we must protect Karnatakas rightful share. The Supreme Court has clearly defined their 177 TMC entitlement. Delivering the water owed to them is our duty. We will build the dam and ensure they receive their share. Let Tamil Nadu come forward for discussionsI am ready to present the facts of the project. I will gather complete details on this and speak further in the coming days, DK Shivakumar added. (ANI)
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