‘Divorced Congress’: DMK’s P. Wilson rules out reconciliation; backs CJP, renews call to scrap NEET
New Delhi: The DMK has ruled out any reconciliation with the Congress, with the Dravidian party’s Rajya Sabha MP P. Wilson saying their relationship has “broken beyond repair” following the Congress decision to support the TVK in forming a government in Tamil Nadu.
In a conversation with ThePrint, Wilson declined to comment on the Congress’ response to the ongoing CJP-led agitation over irregularities in the NEET examination process, saying the DMK has moved on from the alliance.
“We have divorced Congress. We don’t want to comment on them or their activities. We are concerned about students’ welfare,” Wilson said when asked about the Congress’ delayed and calibrated support to the CJP protests, and Sonam Wangchuk.
His remarks come amid continued speculation over the future of the INDIA bloc after the Congress and the DMK parted ways in Tamil Nadu. Wilson also rejected Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh’s assertion that the differences between the two parties amounted to only “temporary bitterness”.
“It is not temporary bitterness. The rank and file have completely turned against the Congress in Tamil Nadu,” he said.
Wilson alleged the Congress abandoned a long-standing alliance with the DMK for “a few ministerial posts” after the Assembly election results.
“We were a trusted ally. Because of our sweat and blood, you were able to get seats. All these years, we contributed seats to you, including in Parliament. How can you just backstab us?” he said.
Asked whether there was any scope for reconciliation within the INDIA bloc, Wilson replied: “As of now, there is no reconciliation at all.”
The DMK would instead focus on strengthening its existing alliances under party president M.K. Stalin, he said. Wilson also dismissed speculation that the party could move closer to the BJP-led NDA. Asked whether the Centre had reached out to the DMK, he replied, “No, they have not.”
On reports that the party could support a future delimitation Bill if concerns of southern states were addressed, Wilson refused to speculate.
“We voted against the previous Bill because it affected the rights of the states. Let the Bill come. Let me see the text first. Why should I answer hypothetical questions?” he said.
He reiterated the DMK’s long-standing opposition to population-based delimitation, warning that the constitutional freeze on readjustment of Lok Sabha seats is due to end after 2026 unless Parliament amends the existing framework.
On the ongoing CJP-led protests, Wilson accused the Centre of failing to engage with students despite having advance knowledge of the gathering.
“The students have a grievance, and that grievance has to be redressed. The government has intelligence. They knew students were gathering in large numbers. They should have taken the students into confidence and constituted a negotiating committee,” he said.
Also read: Sign of a DMK-Congress thaw? Stalin’s birthday wish for Rahul stirs up speculation
‘Nothing would’ve happened if students came near Parliament’
Instead, he alleged, the government allowed the protests to escalate, and then resorted to police action.
“They have resorted to a lathicharge. This is not the way you can treat students. Many of them have been admitted to hospitals. Even our team tried to meet the injured students, but the police did not allow us,” he claimed.
Wilson said Members of Parliament were willing to meet the protesters had they been allowed to march towards Parliament. “They are representatives of the people. We are there to reflect the will of the people. Nothing would have happened if they had come near Parliament,” he said.
The Rajya Sabha MP argued that students had lost faith in the NEET examination because allegations of paper leaks and irregularities had surfaced repeatedly over the years.
“Every year the government says cases have been registered, action is being taken, and criminals will be brought to book. Students are fed up. They want a proper solution,” he said.
Wilson reiterated the DMK’s long-standing demand for scrapping NEET, pointing to the Private Member’s Bill he introduced in Parliament to amend the National Medical Commission Act, 2019. The proposed legislation would have made NEET optional, allowing states that opt out to devise their own admission procedure for medical and dental courses.
“The only way out of this issue is to abolish NEET,” he said.
Apart from NEET, Wilson said the Mekedatu Project—a proposed reservoir and drinking water project on the Cauvery River in Karnataka—would remain one of the key issues for the DMK in Parliament.
Accusing Karnataka of attempting to reduce Tamil Nadu’s share of Cauvery waters through the proposed dam, Wilson said both the previous and the present state governments had sought the constitution of a tribunal under the Inter-State Water Disputes Act.
“We are asking the Union government to constitute a tribunal so that the Mekedatu issue does not go to the next level,” he said.
Wilson also took aim at the Vijay-led TVK government in Tamil Nadu, accusing it of prioritising politics over governance, targeting political opponents and rolling back initiatives introduced by the previous M.K. Stalin government.
Referring to the release of Chief Minister Vijay’s film recently, Wilson alleged that ministers had skipped administrative work to watch the movie.
“All the administrative work has come to a grinding halt. This shows the way they are delivering to the people. Having been elected, they should be sincere in their work,” he said.
Wilson further accused the government of using police to suppress criticism.
“A fair criticism is twisted, and immediately the police come and take the MLA or the person who comments against the Chief Minister. They are arrested, tortured and jailed,” he alleged.
He also claimed that members of statutory bodies were being pressured to resign before the completion of their tenure so that the government could appoint its own nominees.
The DMK MP further alleged that welfare schemes introduced by the previous M.K. Stalin government had either been discontinued or renamed.
Citing the state’s breakfast programme for schoolchildren, Wilson questioned the decision to rename the “Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme” to Perunthalaivar Kamarajar Breakfast Scheme.
“We are not against any person. But why change the name? He’s also a Chief Minister. It would still be the Chief Minister’s Breakfast Scheme,” he said.
Asked about speculations of a possible understanding between the DMK and the AIADMK, Wilson dismissed them as “a malicious rumour”.
The rumours had been spread by the TVK to facilitate defections from the AIADMK, he claimed. “There was nothing true to it. It was invented for the purposes of horse-trading and encouraging MLAs to switch over to TVK,” he said.
(Edited by Ajeet Tiwari)
Also Read: DMK to skip INDIA bloc meet over Congress ‘betrayal’. But it’s not quitting on oppn unity just yet
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