Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin was free to visit Karnataka for attending the meeting of Opposition parties on July 17 and 18 but will face ‘go back’ protests from BJP cadres on his return from Bengaluru, state BJP chief K Annamalai said on Monday.
Annamalai said the reason was Karnataka Government’s insistence on continuing with the Mekedatu dam issue despite protests from the Tamil Nadu government. Stalin is likely to visit Bengaluru mid-July to attend the meeting of opposition leaders hosted by the Congress to chalk out strategy for the 2024 polls.
Sources in the DMK said Stalin will attend the meeting “wherever it is held in India”, while laying stress on the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s “eagerness” in forging unity among Opposition parties. Earlier, it was speculated that the DMK sought a change of venue as it is taking a strident stand on the Mekedatu dam issue which is being raked up by the Congress government.
In a brief interaction with reporters, Annamalai said Stalin was “welcome to do his politics but will face protests on his return.” “The problem is not with the Union Government. The problem is with the DMK and with the Congress when it comes to Mekedatu. Stalin can go and attend the meeting. But when he returns, BJP cadres will come to the streets asking him to go back. I will also be one among them,” he said.
Karnataka’s decision to build a dam in Mekedatu ostensibly to meet growing drinking water needs of Bengaluru before the Cauvery water enters Tamil Nadu has been a source of friction between the two states.
While Karnataka says it is well within its rights to construct the dam, Tamil Nadu opposes the same saying the project cannot be implemented without the concurrence of the lower riparian state.