TN: BJP on Back Foot After Comments of Party Leaders, Ministers Create Uproar

The Union Minister of State for Agriculture and Farmers Welfare, Shobha Karandlaje, on March 19, accused people from Tamil Nadu of coming to Bengaluru and planting bombs, while commenting about the recent blast in Rameswaram Cafe in the city. The Karnataka BJP leader had to retract her comments with an apology after a massive backlash, but has not deleted her post in ‘X’ (formerly Twitter).

A week ago, another Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and member of the National Commission for Women (NCW), Kushboo, had said that women from the state won't vote for Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) just for the ‘alms’ granted to them. She was referring to the Rs 1,000 provided to women head of families by the DMK government. 

The Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman has also been continuously on the receiving side for her comments and reactions on the demands of the Tamil Nadu government for flood relief. The demand to declare the massive floods that hit the southern districts as a national disaster was rejected by the Union government and the demand for financial aid, too, was rejected. A war of words ensued between the DMK and BJP leaders following the incident.

These comments are now backfiring for the BJP, even as the general elections are scheduled to take place in a single phase in Tamil Nadu on April 26. The BJP, at least for a brief period, is being forced to defend itself for the comments by its leaders with the aim to make an impact in the elections. 

MINISTER RETRACTS COMMENTS 

Karndlaje recently sparked a controversy with her comments relating to the blast in the Rameswaram Cafe in Bengaluru. Even as the investigation is being done by the National Investigation Agency (NIA), there is no progress, including identification of the key culprit. 

“People from Tamil Nadu got trained there and planted bombs in the Bengaluru cafe”, the BJO leader said during a protest in the city. She went on to add that, “A man from Kerala attacked three women with acid”.

M K Stalin, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister strongly reacted to the comments of Karandlaje. Writing in ‘X’, he condemned the ‘reckless statement’ of the Union minister. “Clearly, she lacks the authority for such assertions. Tamilians and Kannadigas alike will reject this divisive rhetoric of BJP”, he added. 

Attacking the BJP leadership for its divisive politics, Stalin added, “From the Prime Minister to cadre, everyone in the BJP should stop engaging in this dirty divisive politics at once. ECI must take note of this hate speech and initiate stringent action immediately”.

Karandlaje, on March 20, wrote on ‘X’ tendering an apology for her comments. “To my Tamil brothers & sisters, I wish to clarify that my words were meant to shine light, not cast shadows. Yet I see that my remarks brought pain to some - and for that, I apologize”.

However, she had not deleted her tweet tagging the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and accusing the DMK of ‘appeasement politics resulting in attacks on Hindus and BJP workers’. 

DMK, WOMEN'S ORGANISATIONS CONDEMN STATEMENTS

The DMK, during the last Assembly elections, promised Rs 1,000 every month to women head of families, named as Kalaignar Magalir Urimai Thittam (Kalaignar Womens Entitlement Scheme). Around 1.13 crore women head of families benefited from the scheme. 

NCW member and a film artiste Kushboo courted controversy while addressing a BJP rally in Chennai by claiming that the women would not be voting for the DMK for ‘alms’, referring to the Rs 1,000 per month extended to women. She later claimed that her comments were misinterpreted.

Vanathi Srinivasan, MLA and national president of the BJP Mahila Morcha, defended Khushboo’s remarks and referred to her “limitations” in using Tamil language that could have led to the “confusion”. But, this had hardly any takers. 

The TN Minister for Social Welfare, Geetha Jeevan, reacted sharply to Khushboo’s comments and claimed that the 1.16 crore women would respond to BJP through the ballots. The DMK women's wing held protests accusing the BJP leader of passing derogatory comments against the scheme.

The All India Democratic Women's Association also accused the actor of denigrating women and the scheme extended to the women, whose work were not recognised. 

FLOOD RELIEF DEMAND AND FM’S CLAIMS

When the southern districts of the state, including Thoothukudi, Tirunelveli and Tenkasi, were flooded after incessant rains in December 2023, the government of Tamil Nadu demanded financial aid to carry out relief measures. 

Union Fnance Minister Sitharaman’s remarks inside and outside Parliament drew considerable criticism in the state after the Centre denied financial relief and the state’s demand for declaring the floods as national disaster was rejected. 

She also accused the DMK of failing to learn lessons from the previous floods, but the prediction from the India Meteorology Department was cited as the reason for lack of preparation. A war of words ensued between DMK leaders, particularly Udhayanidhi Stalin, and the Union Finance Minister. 

Sitharaman’s remarks created outrage in the southern districts, as the demand for Rs 37,000 crore was rejected by the Union government. The state government had to spend from its exchequer for providing a relief of Rs 6,000 per house in the districts.  

The BJP which is pinning hopes to make electoral gains from the states in the 2024 general elections has been facing a backlash over the statements of its ministers and leaders. The DMK, on the other side, is leaving no opportunity to use these derogatory comments to criticise BJP, which is contesting without the major Dravidian partners in its alliance.