On Saturday, DMK leader and MP A Raja triggered a massive row by making vile comments against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS), saying that he was “born of an illegitimate affair as a premature baby.”
According to reports, A Raja, who was campaigning for DMK’s Thousand light constituency candidate Dr N Ezhilan on Friday, reportedly abused Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami by referring to him as an illegitimate child.
Drawing a comparison between DMK Chief MK Stalin and CM EPS leadership, A Raja claimed that DMK chief Stalin was a true leader as he was born of pure blood and by legitimate means. However, according to Raja, Edappadi Palaniswami was born premature and was born out of an illegitimate relationship.
In this video that has gone viral now, A Raja can be heard saying, “Throughout his tenure, EPS has done nothing but given full-page ads to all the newspapers to show his fame and popularity. Thanks to this, the newspapers of Tamilnadu obtained a lot of ad revenue from these ads. Now, as the elections are approaching, they are trying to show their gratitude to him by singing praises of him.”
“This does not mean that EPS has the qualifications to be holding the position of CM. Nor has he done any form of sacrifice for the party or the state,” the DMK leader said.
Continuing to disparaging comments against the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, D Raja said, “this clearly shows that our DMK leader Stalin is the leader who was born of pure blood and as a fully grown healthy baby, as well as by legitimate means, whereas Edappadi Palaniswami was born premature, and was born out of an illegitimate relationship.”
Further, during the rally, A Raja also said that CM EPS was less worthy as MK Stalin’s “slippers”. “Till the other day, Edappadi Palaniswami worked in jaggery market, how can he be competition to Stalin? The value of Stalin’s chappal is more than you by one rupee. And he dares Stalin to challenge him?” Raja asked.
As controversy erupts, Raja says his speech his ‘edited’
As Raja’s remarks created a major controversy, the DMK leader attempted to limit the damage by saying that his speech was edited and circulated.
“Should my speech, edited and cut and circulated on social media, be construed as though to tarnish the image of Palaniswami, then I cannot be held responsible for that,” he said.
Defending his speech, Raja said, “During my election campaigning, while I was trying to draw a picture of the way MK Stalin and Edappadi Palaniswami have risen in politics, my speech has cut and edited in various places to create a different impression. I see it getting circulated on social media. I did not have the intention to speak in a derogatory way about his birth”.
Meanwhile, DMK chief MK Stalin has directed his cadres to be careful about their speeches and asked them not to make derogatory remarks.
Stalin, in the statement, said, “I urge you to keep in mind our party’s tradition and dignity when campaigning. Before success, everyone must remember that the path to success is also important. Speakers should not use derogatory language when campaigning. I urge you to refrain from uttering such words and also remember that the party will never accept such talk.”
DMK leader says women have become fat by drinking foreign cows’ milk
On Friday, another DMK leader had stoked a controversy after making sexist remarks against women at an election campaign. DMK leader Dindigul Leoni had come under fire for making shocking sexist remarks against women at an election campaign rally in Coimbatore, saying women have become fat by drinking foreign cows’ milk.
In a video that had gone viral, Leoni was caught body-shaming women saying women have become “like a barrel” after drinking milk from the foreign breed of cows. Continue to make lewd comments, Leoni had said that earlier, women used to be “thin and their hips would have curves”.
“In a cowshed, people use a milking machine for foreign cows. These days, women drink milk from foreign cows because of which they have put on weight. Those days, a woman’s hip resembled the number 8. When she lifted her child, the little one stayed put on the hip. But now they’ve become like a barrel because of which women cannot carry their children on their hips,” Dindigul Leoni can be heard saying.
