CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president Manickam Tagore has accused the BJP of adopting “double standards” on the Cauvery water-sharing dispute, questioning whether the party’s state leadership has ever raised Tamil Nadu’s water rights with Prime Minister Narendra Modi or the BJP-led Centre.
In a post on X, Tagore directed a series of questions at Tamil Nadu BJP president Nainar Nagenthran, alleging that the party was taking contradictory positions on the Cauvery issue in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.
Tagore referred to protests staged by BJP leaders in Karnataka, including former Chief Minister B.S. Yediyurappa, and claimed that they had opposed the release of water to Tamil Nadu.
He asked Nagenthran whether he had seen the demonstrations and challenged him to publicly oppose his party colleagues in Karnataka over their stand on the issue.
“Did you not see BJP leaders, including Yediyurappa, taking to the streets in Karnataka yesterday saying that not even a drop of water should be released to Tamil Nadu?” Tagore asked.
He said photographs and social media posts relating to the protests had been attached to his post.
The Congress leader further questioned whether the Tamil Nadu BJP leadership was prepared to confront its Karnataka unit over the Cauvery dispute.
He asked whether Nagenthran had the “courage” to oppose Karnataka BJP leaders when they campaigned against Tamil Nadu’s claim to Cauvery water.
Tagore also sought to know whether Nagenthran had ever taken up Tamil Nadu’s water requirements directly with Prime Minister Modi or the BJP-led government at the Centre.
“Have you ever spoken even a single word to Prime Minister Modi or the BJP government at the Centre about securing Tamil Nadu’s rightful water share?” he asked.
Accusing the BJP of political inconsistency, Tagore alleged that the party opposed Tamil Nadu’s interests in Karnataka while its leadership at the Centre failed to protect the state’s rights, even as the Tamil Nadu unit sought to blame the Congress party over the dispute.
He described this as the BJP’s “naked double standard” and accused the party of indulging in political theatrics on the Cauvery issue.
Tagore said farmers in Tamil Nadu were fully aware of what he described as the BJP’s “fake drama and deceptive politics” surrounding the state’s legitimate Cauvery water rights.
