“The DMK government provides education while giving breakfast to students in the State, but the Union government imposes entrance examinations that turn even educated persons into uneducated,” MNM founder Kamal Haasan said here on Friday.
Kick-starting his campaign in support of the DMK-led INDIA bloc for the Lok Sabha election in the State, he canvassed for DMK candidate K.E. Prakash who contests from Erode.
Mr. Haasan said the noon-meal scheme, introduced by former Chief Minister K. Kamaraj, was followed by former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin expanded the scope of the scheme to provide students with breakfast too. “But the Centre introduces only entrance exams, like NEET, and imposes them on students,” he said.
Though Tamil Nadu was the second highest taxpayer to the Union government, the State receives just 29 paise for every rupee it gives. “When the State can implement the free breakfast and noon-meal schemes and provide ₹1,000 a month to women heads of families with just 29 paise it receives from the Centre for every rupee it pays, why can’t the Centre implement [such schemes] in north India as migrant workers come here in search of jobs,” he asked.
Mr. Haasan further criticised the Centre for failing to provide relief to Tamil Nadu which was hit by natural calamities (in December last year), and deploying drones to drop teargas shells on protesting farmers (in northern States). When the price of petrol had come down across the globe, the Indian government sold it for profit, he said. He also blamed the Centre for imposing Hindi.
Taking a dig at the Prime Minister, “who claims that he loves the Tamil people”, Mr. Haasan said that the Citizenship (Amendment) Act excluded not only a particular community but also the Sri Lankan Tamils who had suffered in war.
