‘Karthigai Deepam’ row: Only Stalin and his HR and CE Minister incited religious tension, says Nainar Nagenthran

Welcoming the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court’s direction to allow lighting of the lamp on the deepathoon in the Thirupparankundram ‘Karthigai deepam’ row, State BJP president Nainar Nagenthran has said it was the DMK Government that was creating panic and religious tension for political mileage.

Mr. Nagenthran told presspersons here on Tuesday that the DMK government, especially the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowment department, instead of executing the court’s direction of lighting Karthigai ‘deepam’ on the ‘deepathoon’ atop Thirupparankundram hillock by the Commissioner of Police and 10 representatives of the petitioners, had politicised the issue by informing the court that it would create religious tension while there was no such actual unrest.

Besides approaching the Supreme Court against this order, the State government took steps to impeach the Judge who directed it to ensure the lighting of ‘Karthigai deepam’ on the pillar atop Thirupparankundram hillock.

“What is the need for this defiant attitude and attempts to impeach the Judge? What is the motive behind informing that Court that the lighting of ‘Karthigai deepam’ would cause religious unrest? It was the Chief Minister and the HR and CE Minister who tried to incite religious clashes by politicising this issue. The court has observed even now that the government should respect the court’s verdict by executing the orders and should not hurt the religious sentiments of the public,,” Mr. Nagenthran said.

Assured pension

On the Tamil Nadu Assured Pension Scheme (TAPS), the BJP chief said the DMK, which had promised the government employees and the teachers in its poll manifesto in 2021 of reviving the old pension scheme , had now cheated them by introducing a new contributory pension scheme, which would come into effect only from June this year.

“Those who retired from service in 2025 or before June will not even get anything — even their contribution towards pension. Once we form the government, we’ll talk with the government employees, and the teachers, who have now mysteriously dropped their indefinite strike plan after believing in the DMK’s TAPS,” Mr. Nagenthran said.

On the Congress’s demand for share in power, the BJP chief said the Congress would soon snap its electoral alliance with the DMK which was not ready to share power. “The DMK, which is indulging in corruption of all sorts and professing fake secularism to keep the Congress and the Viduthalai Chirthaigal Katchi as electoral allies, wants to make Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in near future at any cost without sharing power. Hence, the Congress and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, which press for share in power, will be forced to leave the DMK-led alliance,” Mr. Nagenthran said.

He endorsed the charges made by Mr. Palaniswami that the DMK had swindled over ₹4 lakh crore through corruption.

“When the AIADMK relinquished power in 2021, Tamil Nadu’s borrowing stood at ₹4.50 lakh crore, it has now ballooned to ₹9 lakh crore due to the DMK’s relentless corruption and maladministration,” he charged.