Union minister Pon Radhakrishnan,
who has been reiterating that extremists are present in Tamil Nadu, today urged Chief Minister K Palaniswami to act tough against them to save the state from an impending 'big threat.'
The senior BJP leader said he has been warning of the presence of extremist elements in the state for the past one year and a half and "even during the regime of (late Chief Minister J) Jayalalithaa."
Referring to the reports in a section of vernacular media, he claimed Maoists, naxalites and their sympathisers were present in the state and called for stringent actions against them.
"I am confident naxalites, Maoists, Muslim extremists and extremist groups who promote secessionism in the name of Tamil have infiltrated many groups. There is a chance that they could have infiltrated the media also," he said.
"Therefore, if Tamil Nadu government doesn't act swiftly, the people of the state will face a big threat," he told reporters at the airport here.
The media should especially 'expose' such persons and help save democracy, he added.
Hitting out at Chief Minister Palaniswami, he said if the former cannot act against such extremists, there was "no point" for him to continue in power.
"The Chief Minister should use all his powers to control the extremists. If (he) can't do so, there is no point (for him) in ruling (the state)," he said.
To a question on the state witnessing many protests, including the latest anti-Salem expressway agitations, he said it should be noted whether they were mere protests or "were being held with some kind of a conspiracy."
He alleged that extremists had carried out an "experiment" during the massive pro-jallikattu protests here last year and said the government should have acted against them then itself.
A government should only protect the people of the state and not the extremists, he added.
Earlier, he told reporters in Madurai that work on All India Institute of Medical Science would begin shortly at Thoppur in Madurai district, following clearance given by the Union health and family welfare ministry.
"The setting up of AIIMS in Madurai will be a big boon for the people of southern districts," he said.
Meanwhile, District Collector Veeraraghava Rao said about 200 acres of land to set up the institute would be handed over to the Central government for AIIMS, once the Government Order was issued in this regard.
The government would provide all that was required for AIIMS, including power and water supply, he said.
Disclaimer: No Business Standard Journalist was involved in creation of this content
