Erode (Tamil Nadu), June 28 (IANS) Tamil Nadu Revenue and Disaster Management Minister K.A. Sengottaiyan on Sunday defended the state government’s decision to appoint K. Venkata Narayana, a producer of Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s film Jana Nayagan, as the Tamil Nadu government’s Special Representative in New Delhi.

Responding to criticism from the opposition, Sengottaiyan said there was nothing wrong with the government’s decision to nominate Venkata Narayana for the post.

“Appointing government representatives is a policy decision. Everyone in India has an equal right to that. Therefore, there is nothing wrong with the appointment,” he said.

The Minister added that all those appointed by Chief Minister Vijay would work solely in the interests of Tamil Nadu and strive to represent the state effectively before the Union government.

The State government recently issued an order appointing Karnataka native Venkata Narayana as its Special Representative in the national capital for a period of one year from the date he assumes office.

Besides being a businessman, Venkata Narayana is also one of the producers of Jana Nayagan, Vijay’s final film before entering full-time politics.

The appointment has, however, triggered sharp criticism from the Opposition DMK, with senior leaders questioning both the choice of the appointee and the message it sends at a time when Tamil Nadu is engaged in several inter-state disputes with Karnataka.

DMK Rajya Sabha MP Tiruchi Siva, in a post on X, described the appointment as “surprising and shocking,” pointing out that Venkataraman is from Karnataka. He questioned whether the newly appointed representative would firmly safeguard Tamil Nadu’s interests, particularly on the contentious Mekedatu dam project proposed by Karnataka across the Cauvery river.

Siva recalled that Chief Minister Vijay had categorically assured the Tamil Nadu Assembly that his government would never permit the Mekedatu project, arguing that it would adversely affect irrigation and the livelihoods of farmers in the Cauvery delta. In that context, he said, the government owed the people a clear explanation and assurance that the state’s interests would remain fully protected despite the appointment.

Senior DMK leader and Lok Sabha MP A. Raja also launched an attack on the government, accusing it of rewarding influential individuals with key positions while sidelining experienced policymakers and public representatives.

In a strongly worded statement, Raja questioned the government’s priorities and took a swipe at the ruling dispensation’s promise of ushering in “change”.

“‘Change’ seems to have a pleasant fragrance. Are we expected to hold our noses, or should we remove the foul smell? Long live democracy,” Raja remarked sarcastically.

The appointment has emerged as the latest political flashpoint in Tamil Nadu, with the Opposition demanding greater clarity on the rationale behind appointing a Karnataka native to represent the state’s interests in New Delhi, while the government has maintained that the decision was well within its executive powers and made solely in the interests of Tamil Nadu.

–IANS

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