As BJP rakes up Katchatheevu, DMK says opposed giving it away

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and its ally the Congress in Tamil Nadu on Sunday slammed Prime Minister Narendra Modi over his Congress "callously" gave away Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka remark with the ruling party asserting that it had opposed in 1974 the ceding of the island to the neigbouring country.

Hitting out at Modi, the Tamil Nadu Congress demanded answers for the "Chinese incursion" into Indian territory.

Responding to the allegation by Modi, DMK organisation secretary RS Bharathi said the Prime Minister has "no achievements" to showcase and charged that he (Prime Minister) was only spreading "lies."

Bharathi said it was wrong to talk about an issue without studying its history.

In 1974, the DMK held state-wide agitations and public meetings to oppose and condemn the ceding of Katchatheevu to Sri Lanka.

The DMK's position has been made amply clear multiple times by late party patriarch M Karunanidhi and party president MK Stalin.

The DMK was out-and-out against giving away Katchatheevu to the neighbouring country.

"You can wake someone who is asleep but not a person who is pretending," Bharathi, a former Rajya Sabha MP told PTI.

If Modi was really keen on Katchatheevu, he could have reclaimed that island during his 10 years in office, he said.

"Why did not he take up the Katchatheevu issue?" Bharathi asked.

Tamil Nadu Congress Committee President K Selvaperunthagai slammed Modi for raking up the Katchatheevu issue.

On X, the Congress leader sought to know "when PM Modi will talk on Chinese incursion into Indian territory, the Parliament security breach, the Pulwama terror attack in which 44 soldiers were killed, Manipur which is on fire and the missing (stolen) documents related to Rafale fighter aircraft deal."

Prime Minister Modi on Sunday cited a media report to assert that new facts reveal that the Congress "callously" gave away Katchatheevu island to Sri Lanka.

"Eye opening and startling! New facts reveal how Congress callously gave away Katchatheevu. This has angered every Indian and reaffirmed in people's minds- we can't ever trust Congress," he said on X, sharing the report.