In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Chief Minister MK Stalin urged Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leaders and cadre to not comment on Sanatana Dharma. He said that it was being used as a diversionary tactic by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to avoid questions on Manipur, Adani and the recent CAG report.
He wrote, "While the Prime Minister remains silent on everyday issues impacting the common man, his cabinet focuses on #SanatanaDharma by spreading false narratives and fuelling it with support from a few media outlets.
"I urge our DMK leaders and cadre not to react to such diversion tactics and to continue posing questions to the BJP on #ManipurViolence, #AdaniHindenburg, a whopping 7.50 lakh crore rupees flagged in the #CAGreport, and other pressing issues, along with highlighting 9-year failures of the BJP. We will keep on posing questions, and so will #INDIA."
His post indicating a toning down of the DMK's stance came on the day when INDIA alliance partners met in Delhi (13 September).
The row had deepened because of the comments of senior DMK MP A Raja and Higher Education minister K Ponmudy following Udhayanidhi Stalin's remarks calling for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma.
Raja had said that Udhayanidhi had been soft in comparing Sanatana Dharma to diseases like dengue and malaria and he should have instead compared it to diseases like HIV and leprosy which have social stigma.
Days later, Ponmudy's comments stating that the I.N.D.I.A alliance had been formed to oppose Sanatana Dharma went viral on social media and BJP state president K Annamalai shared a video of Raja saying Hindu religion is a menace to India and the entire world while speaking about caste.
The comments exposed divisions within the alliance as a number of parties distanced themselves from the comments.
Reacting to the post, Annamalai said that the comments by Udhayanidhi and other party members on Sanatana Dharma were to divert attention away from the DMK's scams.
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