Outrage sweeps India following DMK Minister MRK Panneerselvam’s public slight against North Indian workers in Tamil Nadu. Limiting them to ‘table wiping, construction grunt work, and pani puri hawking,’ his words have been slammed as a direct assault on national unity.
Pioneering the criticism, Union Minister Chirag Paswan dismissed it as headline-chasing nonsense. The NDA’s inclusive agenda under Modi remains unshaken, prioritizing development for every citizen.
‘Unity in diversity is our core,’ BJP’s Pratul Shahdev stressed, branding the remark a desperate ploy by DMK to divide North from South fearing electoral wipeout.
Voices from Bihar amplified the chorus: SP’s Avdhesh Prasad hailed India’s cultural tapestry as its true identity. Minister Deepak Prakash urged restraint, emphasizing brotherhood.
Congress MP Tariq Anwar balanced critique with empathy for migrants fleeing unemployment, referencing Bihar’s high out-migration and unfulfilled poll promises. AIADMK’s Kovai Sathyan laid bare DMK’s double standards, from door-to-door Hindi appeals to migrants during Erode polls.
This scandal lays bare vulnerabilities in India’s migrant labor dynamics. Policymakers must address root causes like job creation while rejecting rhetoric that pits regions against each other. True leadership lies in weaving India’s diverse threads into a stronger whole.