Political opponents that the DMK-led alliance would face in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls were not only the “enemies of India and its Constitution” but also the “enemies of humanity”, DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin charged on Thursday, March 21, 2024. The DMK, part of the INDIA bloc, is the leader of the alliance in Tamil Nadu.

“The rivals that we will meet in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections are not only our political opponents but are India’s enemies. They are the enemies of India’s Constitution. They are the enemies of Indian unity and integration. They are the enemies of India’s multiculturalism and the ideal of secularism. They are the enemies of federalism. In all, they are the enemies of humanity,” Mr. Stalin said, in an open letter to his party cadre.

Mr. Stalin alleged that those in the BJP government did not only hesitate to lie, but also spoke only “lies”. He claimed that from the Prime Minister to Union Ministers, to Union Ministers of State and BJP functionaries, all were habituated to lying during campaigns, and the people of Tamil Nadu were aware of this.

While the BJP had nothing to list out as projects it had implemented in Tamil Nadu over the past 10 years, it chose to indulge in slandering the DMK, Mr Stalin alleged. “Since the people of Tamil Nadu are with the DMK alliance, the BJP’s campaign formula is to project Tamils as terrorists,” Mr. Stalin said, in an apparent reference to recent remarks made by Union Minister of State Shobha Karandlaje in Karnataka.

The DMK president also called upon his party cadre to explain to the electorate how Tamil Nadu was let down during the past 10 years by the BJP government and“how the AIADMK betrayed and went along” with the national party. “Let us tear the face masks of those in [a] secret alliance,” he said, and also called for defeating fake campaigns and lies being spread through social media.

If the Prime Minister and the BJP, who claimed that a ‘New India’ was born when people stood in queues at midnight due to demonetisation, were hesitant to pronounce “INDIA”, Mr. Stalin said, “This is INDIA bloc’s preliminary victory. It will continue on the electoral turf. It will bring about a change in the government.”

While the previous general elections to the Lok Sabha were for electing who should form the government, the 2024 Lok Sabha polls were about “who should not form the government,” Mr. Stalin said and contended: “These are not merely elections. This is the turf to protect democracy. We have to win this battle. If we work tirelessly, victory is certain.”