AIADMK and DMK trade "betrayal" barbs

Chennai, April 8: With about 15 days left for polling in Tamil Nadu, arch rivals DMK and AIADMK are trading barbs of 'betrayal' against each other on crucial issues like power and water, further intensifying the already high decibel campaigning.

Rhetoric resonate the air as star campaigners on either side, AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa and DMK scion M K Stalin, list the betrayals of the other, asking the electorate if their votes should help their rivals win and add to their woes.

The undercurrent of Jayalalithaa's high voltage addresses is indeed DMK bashing and the 65-year-old leader packs a punch when she accuses DMK of betraying Tamil Nadu on emotive issues including inter-state Cauvery river water sharing and Mullaperiyar stand-off and the Sri Lankan Tamils issue.

Jayalalithaa repeats at every public rally that DMK government failed to mount pressure on the Centre to notify the 2007 final award of the Cauvery Tribunal, pointing it out to be the 'biggest gratitude' by DMK to people who had voted for it, asking if there could be a bigger betrayal than this.

The AIADMK general secretary rounds off her criticism asking if the DMK, for all its 'betrayals', including supporting the Congress-led UPA on key issues like FDI in retail and power generation, deserves MPs in Parliament, and exhorts the voters to deal a 'fatal blow' to her main rival.

DMK, albeit delayed in its poll campaigning behind AIADMK, is equally up to the task, listing Jayalalithaa's 'betrayal,' mainly in the area of electricity, that has come to haunt the three year AIADMK rule as it romped back to power on the promise of addressing the acute shortage.

Taking a cue from Jayalalithaa, Stalin reminds her of her promises of making the state a power surplus one in three months of taking over as Chief Minister and dubs it as "Agmark betrayal."

"AIADMK came to power promising to solve the power shortage within three months of assuming office. But, even after the government has completed three years, the situation has gone from bad to worse. Is it not a betrayal by AIADMK? Stalin asks the gathering, which responds "yes".

The DMK leader and his junior colleagues too, have been training their guns on Jayalalithaa for going back on her party's earlier promise of implementing the Rs 2000-odd crore Sethusamudram project, calling it another big betrayal.

The list of betrayals listed out by either parties is long and with about a fortnight left for polling, there is no let up in trading of such charges.

PTI