"Southern Voice Speaks": MK Stalin Launches Podcast Series For INDIA Pitch

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK president MK Stalin today announcedhis podcast series, "Speaking for India”, to highlight what he calls the “destruction of India under BJP”.  

The podcast would also promote the vision of an “egalitarian and harmonious India” that the opposition alliance aspires to build, Mr Stalin said in a video hours before the third meeting of the INDIA grouping, in Mumbai.

"Recently, I started a question-and-answer session: Ungalil Oruvan (one among you) to share my views. The DMK is turning 75 years old and is the third major party in the Parliament. It was nurtured by iconic leaders like (former Chief Ministers) C N Annadurai and M Karunanidhi, who created a deep impact," the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister is heard saying in the video posted on X, formerly Twitter. The podcast will be available in English and other Indian languages.

The podcast is seen by many as an attempt by Mr Stalin to carve a larger political space for his party in national politics ahead of the general election next year.

In the video teaser, Mr Stalin hit out at the Centre's decision to lower LPG prices, calling it an indication of  the Centre's appeasement at work ahead of the 2024 polls.

“The Rs 200 reduction in gas prices is an indicator that elections are drawing closer,” he said, adding that similar cuts might be extended to petrol and diesel prices as well.

On Wednesday, the DMK chief called attention to the INDIA alliance's growth with 28 parties set to attend the Mumbai meet.
On the agenda for the mega gathering is the unveiling of the alliance's logo, a coordination committee, appointing convenors, and discussing the crucial issue of seat sharing.
The meeting will be attended by Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi along with Nitish Kumar, Mamata Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal, Sharad Pawar and Uddhav Thackeray among others.

This conclave follows the success of the first meeting in Patna earlier this year and a subsequent one in Bengaluru, which occurred after the Congress came to power in Karnataka.

The alliance aims to challenge the ruling BJP-led National Democratic Alliance in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls and thwart the BJP's attempt to secure a third consecutive term. The BJP, on the other hand, has labeled the INDIA alliance an "unholy nexus" of corrupt parties.