Hogenakkal put on hold for Kanimozhi: Jayalalithaa

Talking to the media after staging a walkout from the House on Tuesday, Jaya said the CM’s decision to wait was prompted by the speculation that Kanimozhi will be inducted into the Union Cabinet in the recent reshuffle. Unleashing scathing criticism on the CM, Jaya said, “Kanimozhi’s induction is not our concern; we are only worried about the drinking water problem faced by the people of Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri where water has high levels of fluoride. There was no connection between Karnataka polls and drinking water in Tamil Nadu.”

AIADMK staged a walkout after being denied permission by Speaker R Avudiyappan to move a special adjournment motion on the Hogenakkal project, an initiative to provide drinking water to lakhs of people in the two water starved districts that has led to a stand off between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

Denying allegations, Karunanidhi said there was no link between implementation of the project and a Cabinet berth for his daughter. “I am a Tamilian interested in protecting Tamilians everywhere. Elections should be held without violence, but when the seeds of hatred have been sown, elections will not be peaceful. My decision to delay the project was taken to avoid this,” he said.

Emphasising that the project would be completed by 2012 as planned, he added that it was merely put on hold and not shelved. The Union knew when to comment on the issue, he said and urged the regional units of national parties to refrain from making differing stands in controversial issues.