A significant controversy erupted in Tamil Nadu a day after Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed the names of four astronauts who will spearhead India’s Gaganyaan mission during his visit to ISRO’s Satish Dhawan Space Centre. The ruling party had paid tribute to China at the expense of the nation’s top space agency. The controversy started when Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) minister Anitha R Radhakrishnan allegedly tweeted a graphic depicting India’s space program, with a Chinese flag taking center stage.
BJP ‘shocked’
The BJP and others have reacted strongly to the “shocking” poster that features DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi, Chief Minister MK Stalin, and other important ministers. They argue that it disrespects the sovereignty of the country and openly glorifies China.
President of the Tamil Nadu BJP, K Annnamalai, took a firm stance against the DMK regime, claiming that since the announcement of ISRO’s second launch pad in Kulasekarapatinam, a province in Thoothukudi district, the party has been frantic to claim credit and put stickers on things.
DMK insulted India’s best scientists
The head of the BJP unit in Tamil Nadu also criticized the DMK for its “past misdeeds” and said it had insulted the country’s best scientists in the past. He also cited an incident in which a “inebriated” DMK minister had treated ISRO staff horribly.
He further informed that when ISRO was conceptualised, Tamil Nadu was the first choice.
“The amount of desperation only proves their attempt to bury their past misdeeds, but we must remind them that it was beacuse of DMK, why the Satish Dhawan Space Centre is today in Andhra Pradesh & not Tamil Nadu,” he said.
“TN CM Thiru Annadurai, who could not attend the meeting because of severe shoulder pain, deputed Mathiyazhagan, one of his ministers, for the meeting. ISRO officials were kept waiting for a long, and Mathiyazhagan was finally brought to the meeting in an “inebriated state” & was incoherent throughout the meeting. And, this was the treatment our country’s space programme received 60 years ago,” he further said.
