Better Late Than Never: Annamalai's Letter Requesting Central Funds For Chennai Metro Phase 2 Is A Welcome Intervention

Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president K Annamalai has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi requesting the Centre to fund half of the cost of the much-debated second phase of the Chennai metro.

His letter comes just days after Chief Minister M K Stalin requested the same during his meeting with Prime Minister Modi in New Delhi. 

The funding of the Rs 63,246 crore project had become a flashpoint between the BJP-led central government and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government in the state in the past few months. 

While the BJP in Tamil Nadu maintained that the Centre was looking into it, the DMK repeatedly questioned the delay. 

Even when an opportunity to address the question arose in July 2024 (in the form of an answer to an unstarred Parliament question by DMK Members of Parliament Kanimozhi and Rani Sreekumar), the Centre did not spell out the reasons.

Only recently, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said it was a state-sector project, with the Centre mainly playing the role of a facilitator for loans, as per a decision taken by the previous All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) government.

By then, the DMK had spread the narrative that the central government was meting out step-motherly treatment to Tamil Nadu while generously funding metro projects in other states.

Further fuel was added to the fire after a video of the Annapoorna hotel owner apologising to Sitharaman was posted by a BJP functionary.

Annamalai's letter acknowledged this narrative. He wrote: "... However, the DMK Government has chosen to use this as an opportunity to showcase that the Central Government has been blind-eyed to Tamil Nadu's requests. This is despite the Central Government having invested enormously in the last 10 years to upgrade the State's infrastructure and;

"...The DMK has chosen to politicize this matter through its malicious propaganda, but we believe in the positive impact this project can have on the city."

Annamalai also wrote that the Centre's participation would be necessary to complete the project as the progress on it has been very slow.

While one wonders what was stopping the Centre from changing tack on the issue or giving out the details sooner than it did, the letter is no doubt welcome.

At the end of the day, people want projects to be completed on time. At this point, the DMK would likely get the credit if the Centre releases funds, but there is no way that the BJP can win seats in the state by being seen as a party that is not funding projects in Tamil Nadu.

The earlier the party realises that, the better it will be for them. Otherwise, it will have nobody to blame but itself for stirring up a 2019-like anti-Modi narrative in the state.

Also Read: Centre’s Weak Communication Hurts BJP In Tamil Nadu: DMK Exploiting Chennai Metro Funding Narrative To Gain Ground