Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s former Chief Minister and AIADMK Coordinator K. Palaniswami on Sunday September 12 lashed out at the DMK government for its false poll promise which resulted in the suicide of a 19-year old boy.
In a strongly worded statement, Palaniswami said the DMK party made a false poll promise of cancelling the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) which has resulted in the suicide of 19-year old medical aspirant Dhanush in the State.
Palaniswami said during the assembly elections Stalin declared that within 24-hours of coming to power in Tamil Nadu, the DMK government will take action to cancel NEET and it knows what to do.
The DMK party leaders and members with a sarcastic smile on their face promised that the first signature of their Chief Minister will be cancelling NEET in the state, giving false hope to the students, he said.
Expressing his anguish at the suicide of Dhanush, the AIADMK Joint Coordinator said a responsible leader of a political party should weigh the consequences in the society before making any public statement.
Palaniswami said when asked in the assembly about the NEET exam in the state, Stalin gave a wishy-washy answer.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, Palaniswami said like doing “surya namaskar” after going blind, the government said that it would move a resolution in the Assembly against NEET on Monday a day after the exam was held.
Palaniswami urged the government to provide a solatium of Rs. 1 crore to the parents of Dhanush.
Dhanush was found dead in his home at Kooliyur village in Tamil Nadu’s Salem district. Police sources said the deceased Dhanush was to appear for his third attempt in the national entrance test on Sunday.
Dhanush had cleared his Class 12 exam in 2019 and was preparing for the NEET exam on Sunday. However, he was found lying dead when his parents went to wake him up early in the morning.
Police rushed to his home and the body was taken to the government general hospital at Mettur. A case has been registered and police are investigating the matter.
Meanwhile, reacting to the development, Chief Minister Stalin expressed shock and blamed the Centre for the tragic incident.
