Union minister Pon Radhakrishnan says Karunanidhi birthday celebrations take state backward by 50 years

Nagercoil: Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan on Sunday slammed the Diamond Jubilee celebrations to mark DMK leader M Karunanidhi’s entry into politics as an attempt to take Tamil Nadu backwards by 50 years. “The efforts of the Dravidian parties to push the state backwards will not succeed. The diamond jubilee celebrations are being organised by political parties who have been sidelined and boycotted by the people.” [caption id=“attachment_3415296” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan. Photo courtesy: Twitter[/caption] “It is not diamond jubilee celebrations… but celebrations of old people who are defeated because people boycotted them. It is an attempt to take the state back by 50 years” he said. Radhakrishnan was speaking to reporters after inspecting various development projects being implemented in Nagercoil with the central government aid. On Saturday, a galaxy of opposition leaders had descended to Chennai to attend Karunanidhi’s 94th birthday celebrations and the diamond jubilee of his legislative career, amid efforts to forge a broad-based alliance ahead of the presidential poll. Top non-NDA leaders, including Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi, Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy, TMC leader Derek O’Brien, CPI(M) General Secretary Sitaram Yechury, former J&K Chief Minister Omar Abdullah and CPI national secretary D Raja were present.