CHENNAI, January 4: The resounding success of the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS) launched by Finance Minister and Tamil Maanila Congress leader P Chidamabaram is the TMC's New Year gift to the country, claimed TMC general secretary Peter Alphonse on Sunday. He added that VDIS had proved the the critics of the coalition government run by regional parties totally wrong.Alphonse said that the AIADMK front would disintegrate once the election results were out. While AIADMK general secretary, J Jayalalitha had claimed that the AIADMK would join the BJP government in the event of the latter getting a majority, BJP president L K Advani had stated that the issue would be decided after the elections, Alphonse pointed out, adding that this exposed the contradictions in the two camps.
Terming the just-concluded AIADMK conference in Tirunelveli as a big-flop, he said, the turnout for the rally was not as huge as claimed by the party. ``As the roads of Tirunelveli are narrow, it appeared to be
crowded,'' he said. According to his information, the AIADMK had spent about Rs 10 crore on the election, he said adding, ``this kind of display of money power is responsible for people losing faith in the political system''.
On Jayalalitha returning Rs one crore to the AIADMK as part-payment of the loan she had taken from the party funds to settle her income tax arrears, Alphonse said, ``the Income Tax authorities should probe into how she managed to get Rs one crore to repay the loan''.
Stating that Jayalalitha was still addicted to her lavish lifestyle, he alleged that all the 200 rooms of a hotel were vacated for her during her stay in Tirunelveli.
Asked about the fate of the DMK-TMC alliance, he said, ``it's cooking''. However, he hastened to add that TMC leader G K Moopanar alone could respond to questions on alliance.
Meanwhile, Moopanar is scheduled to tour various districts in the State from January 10, to gear up partymen for the coming elections. Union Ministers P Chidambaram, M
Arunachalam, Dhanushkodi Adityan, leader of the opposition in the State Assembly S Balakrishnan will accompany him on the three-day tour.
Copyright © 1998 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.
