Amit Shah flays DMK govt as country's most corrupt, targets family politics in TN

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Sunday (January 4) tore into the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) government in Tamil Nadu, calling it the most corrupt administration in the country, where a norm of “20 per cent cut money” is prevalent.

Also read: CM Stalin launches Tamil Nadu Assured Pension Scheme for govt staff

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader, who was addressing a mega rally in Pudukkottai in central-eastern Tamil Nadu, expressed optimism that the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) would win the Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal this year. The saffron party and its alliance have never tasted electoral success in these two states.

Shah lists NDA victories since 2024, says TN, WB next

At the rally which marked the culmination of the nationwide ‘Tamilagam Thalainimira Tamilanin Payanam’ (A Tamil's yatra for Tamil Nadu's rise) yatra undertaken by the BJP’s state president, Nainar Nagenthran, over nearly three months, the home minister listed out the NDA’s victories since 2024, including those in the northern states of Haryana, Delhi and Bihar (both in 2025), and added that it was now the turn of Tamil Nadu and Bengal to join the list.

தமிழக மக்கள் திமுக அரசின் அதிகப்படியான ஊழல் மற்றும் பொய் வாக்குறுதிகளால் சலிப்படைந்துள்ளனர். 'தமிழகம் தலை நிமிர தமிழனின் பயணம்' பேரணி மாநிலம் முழுவதும் தனது பயணத்தை வெற்றிகரமாக நிறைவு செய்துள்ளது, பல லட்சக்கணக்கான மக்களை இப்பேரணி இணைக்கிறது. இன்று அதன் நிறைவு விழாவையொட்டி,… https://t.co/k1PD0AFNm2

— Amit Shah (@AmitShah) January 4, 2026

By way of a robust alliance of the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, BJP and others, the NDA will emerge victorious, Shah said, alleging that the DMK government has failed on all fronts.

HM tears into DMK with corruption charges

Slamming the ruling DMK over alleged graft and claiming that it was “synonymous” with corruption, he asked if the state can progress with an “army of corrupt ministers”.

“A DMK leader’s name has come up in a cash-for-jobs scam, that of another leader in money laundering,” he said.

Also read: Congress firm on DMK alliance for Tamil Nadu polls, denies TVK talks

Another leader was named in the “coal scam,” he said without naming anyone.

“Can Tamil Nadu's progress happen with such an army of corrupt ministers. There is a 20 per cent cut money. The state economy is running on debts and liquor sales,” Shah charged.

Accuses ruling party of dynastic politics

He also alleged that the DMK regime's sole motive is to make Chief Minister M K Stalin's son Udhayanidhi the CM, but warned that the dream to perpetuate dynasty rule would not come true, and the time has come to put an end to family politics in Tamil Nadu.

He pointed out that while late DMK president M Karunanidhi was the chief minister, his son M K Stalin also came to the post and that plans were there to elevate Udhayanidhi also.

He also targeted the ruling party on a number of other issues.

“There is no security for women in Tamil Nadu,” he said, while criticising the ruling party and expressed confidence that the NDA will form the government in Tamil Nadu by April this year following a win in the Assembly polls.

Also read: Is DMK rewriting its Periyarist playbook to counter Hindutva in Tamil Nadu?

The BJP-AIADMK alliance was a “natural” one, and the two had fought the 1998 and 2019 parliamentary polls, besides the 2021 state elections.

Accuses DMK govt of opposing Hindus

The BJP veteran also slammed the Stalin government over "atrocities" on Hindus.

He alleged Hindu forms of worship were being "insulted," and claimed that during the Ayodhya Ram Temple bhoomi puja, an "unannounced curfew was imposed" in TN.

"Their senior leaders call Sanatan Dharma dengue, malaria. Hindu processions and visarjan (immersion of idols of Hindu deities) have been stayed. I want to tell Stalin; you have broken the constitutional ethos by committing atrocities against Hindus," he said.

Also read: Rift in TN Congress after Praveen Chakravarty says state has higher debt than UP

BJP leaders Piyush Goyal, L Murugan, Tamilisai Soundararajan and Pon Radhakrishnan were also present alongside Shah at the rally.

AIADMK's chief and state Opposition leader Edappadi K Palaniswami also addressed a rally in Salem district, almost coinciding with Shah's public meeting time.

(With agency inputs)