No use voting for A Raja, he may go to jail, says AIADMK gen secy

Addressing a mammoth crowd, AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Thursday claimed that there was no use in electing former Union Minister A Raja from the Nilgiris Lok Sabha constituency, as he may end up in jail.

Udhagamandalam (Tamil Nadu): AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Thursday claimed that there was no use in electing former Union Minister A Raja from the Nilgiris Lok Sabha constituency, as he may end up in jail.

A case against the tainted Raja challenging his acquittal in the Rs 1.76 lakh crore 2G spectrum scam is likely to come up in a court and it will soon be known whether he will be here or there (in jail), Palaniswami said while addressing an election rally here. He said Raja had indulged in corruption even in the "invisible" radio waves and this "scientific corruption" during the Congress-led UPA regime not only made him land in the Tihar jail but also brought disrepute to Tamil Nadu.

"So, there's no use in voting for A Raja.... it is not known whether he will be here or there," Palaniswami said while garnering votes for the party candidate for Nilgiris Lokesh Tamilselvan. A special CBI court had acquitted Raja, Kanimozhi and others from all charges in the 2G Spectrum allocation case in December 2017.

Addressing a mammoth crowd, Palaniswami, who is a former Chief Minister, said like Raja many in the DMK were corrupt. "The DMK is a corrupt party and it was the only government that was dissolved for corruption," he said. He urged the voters to give a clear mandate to his party for more welfare and development initiatives.