“I would say that if it is not for political reasons but even otherwise if he is feeling hurt, then I have no hesitancy to seek a heartfelt apology,” Mr Raja said.
DMK leader A Raja, who had stirred a huge controversy last week after his remarks against Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and his mother, has now apologised for the comments. Earlier on Saturday, the AIADMK had written to the Election commission, demanding that Mr Raja be debarred from campaigning for “making vulgar and scandalous speeches” against the Chief Minister, popularly known as EPS.
A Raja, while offering the apology, said: “I reiterate… my speech was not a personal criticism of two leaders. My speech was an estimate and comparison of two personalities in public life.”
Mr Raja, who was former telecom minister and was later acquitted in the high profile 2G case, referred to the same case and said: “Justice Saini’s four-point summary in 2G verdict will apply here too: Misreading, selective reading, out of context reading and non-reading.”
“I was distressed to read in the media that the Chief Minister had been hurt by my words. It was taken out of context, misunderstood but I express regret from the bottom of my heart. Further, I would say that if it is not for political reasons but even otherwise if he is feeling hurt, then I have no hesitancy to seek a heartfelt apology,” Mr Raja said.
In the comments that are at the centre of this controversy, Mr Raja had compared the rise and DMK’s MK Stalin and AIADMK’s E Palaniswami. Mr Raja had said: “He (MK Stalin) served one year in prison under MISA, was district secretary, then general committee member, youth wing, secretary, treasurer, then working president and after Kalaignar’s passing, became party president. That’s why one can say Stalin is born in the proper way, nine months after a proper marriage and rituals. Whereas Edappadi is born like a premature baby and came all of a sudden.”
Mr Raja, in another speech, had said that the chief minister was “worth less than [DMK chief MK] Stalin’s slipper”.
“Till the other day, Edappadi Palaniswami worked in ‘vellamandi‘ (jaggery market), how can he be competition to Stalin? The value of Stalin’s chappal is more than you by one rupee. And he dares Stalin to challenge him?” Mr Raja had said.
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