DMK expresses concern over move to construct check dams across

DMK today expressed concern over Kerala's move to construct check dams across Bhavani river, saying it will impact three districts in Tamil Nadu and urged Chief Minister O Panneerselvam to take up the matter with his Kerala counterpart Pinarayi Vijayan.
DMK Working President and opposition leader MK Stalin condemned Kerala's move to construct check dams across the river at two locations and said it will severely impact the drinking water and irrigation needs of Coimbatore, Erode and Tirupur districts in Tamil Nadu.
Kerala had proposed four more such initiatives, he said.
When a similar effort was made in 2002, it was stopped at behest of DMK, he added.

Claiming that farmers of Cauvery delta region were committing suicide due to "non-availability of water, Kerala's attempt to betray Tamil Nadu farmers is indeed regrettable and is a matter of concern," he said.
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In the letter to the Governor, the DMK complained about
their eviction from the assembly and sought postponement of the session to enable a secret voting.
"The agenda of Speaker (P Dhanapal) is to go ahead with voting and announce that the Chief Minister has succeeded in getting the confidence of the House, in the absence of the DMK members. This is totally foul play and unconstitutional," it said.

"Therefore, we request the Governor to restore democratic values and order postponement of the Assembly session for conducting secret voting on the Confidence Motion," it said.
However, the Assembly was adjourned sine die after the confidence vote.
Stalin noted that the party insisted on secret voting in the Assembly in view of the "fact that a number of AIADMK legislators were held as hostage in a resort."
He alleged "they were brought for voting under tight security and threat and that they will not be able to exercise their voting according to conscience and free will."
He said DMK also 'pleaded' with the Speaker to postpone voting to a future date but that he had not obliged.

"The Speaker did not listen to us and tried to carry on with open voting. He adjourned the House twice. Therefore, we resorted to dharna in a very peaceful manner, but the Speaker ordered expulsion of all the DMK members en bloc," he said.
"The police entered into the Assembly Hall and removed us by using force, presumably under the instructions of the Speaker. Many of our members have sustained injury," he claimed.