Chennai:
DMK leader M K Stalin today threw out a challenge to Tamil Nadu Law minister M Paranjothi on his threat to initiate defamation proceedings against him for levelling land grabbing charges against the Chief Minister, saying he is "ready to face the challenge legally."
Stalin sought to turn the tables on Paranjothi, quoting from the Justice K P Sivasubramanian Committee report, set up by the DMK government, which mentioned that the land in Siruthavur was usurped by Jayalalithaa and those related to her.
"The report is still with the government, which went into the Siruvathrur land issue. The law minister should at least open the report and read it, which will spell everything clearly," he said in a statement.
Quoting from the report, Stalin said, "the villagers had filed complaints against owners of bungalow in which Jayalalithaa was staying. It belongs to family members of Sasikala. Since they were sent away from the place during AIADMK regime in 1994, they requested the then DMK government to take action against those land grabbed".
Stalin also alleged that it was during AIADMK regime that the land patta at Siruvathur was changed to her name and the officer in charge transferred immediately without any motive.
"The reason I mention this is that it discloses the desperate haste with which they passed the posting order for M Thiagarajan (officer who changed the patta) without even providing for posting of the individual who is disturbed and dislocated all of a sudden," he said quoting the report.
On the Kodanadu land issue, Stalin said he would give a detailed report on it when the AIADMK government takes action against him.
He also referred to the Supreme Court order on March 19 directing opening of the two-and-half km road for 24 hours for the benefit of villagers.
The DMK leader alleged that this road was blocked after Jayalalithaa started staying in Kodanadu, "which has put the people to a lot of hardship."
Earlier today, Paranjothi had slammed Stalin for indulging in "mudslinging" by levelling land grabbing charges against Jayalalithaa and termed his action as an attempt to divert attention from criminal charges facing him.
The Minister also threatened to initiate defamation proceedings against him.
Stalin's allegations against Jayalalithaa were "nothing" but "meaningless fulminations" to divert people's attention from the land grabbing case against him, he had said in a statement here.
Paranjothi said since the DMK leader has levelled the charges without an "iota of truth and substance", he is liable to be prosecuted for defaming my leader (Jayalalithaa) and such action would follow in due course".