Amid China flag row, BJP wishes Tamil Nadu CM Stalin in Mandarin

Chennai: As Chief Minister M K Stalin turned 71, Tamil Nadu BJP on Friday wished him on the occasion in Mandarin, in an apparent dig at him after an advertisement issued by his ministerial colleague Anitha R Radhakrishnan had a Chinese flag on the nose cone of a rocket. 

 “On behalf of @BJP4Tamilnadu, here’s wishing our Honourable CM Thiru @mkstalin avargal a happy birthday in his favourite language! May he live a long & healthy life,” the state unit’s official handle on X said with an image wishing a happy birthday to the Chief Minister in Mandarin. 

In another tweet, the BJP asked the people to copy the text in Mandarin if they wished to convey birthday greetings to Stalin in the language. 

The tweet by the BJP comes two days after an advertisement issued by Fisheries Minister Anitha Radhakrishnan to mark the foundation stone laying ceremony of India’s second spaceport in Thoothukudi district had a Chinese flag on the nose cone of a rocket. 

The advertisements issued by Radhakrishnan, who hails from the districts, appeared in leading Tamil dailies on Wednesday morning, hours before Modi participated in the ground breaking ceremony for the launchpad in Kulasekarapattinam, which is expected to be geographically advantageous for the country. 

“In their endeavour to paste stickers on our schemes, a DMK politician today used the Chinese flag in an advertisement. The DMK politicians cannot see anything else…they are not ready to see India’s development in the space sector. They didn’t put any pictures of India. They have insulted India’s space scientists,” Modi had said. 

The tweet received mixed reactions with BJP supporters hailing the “taunt” at DMK while others calling it “cheap.”