At a well-attended public meeting organised by the TMC's district unit here to mark the completion of the golden jubilee of Independence, almost all the speakers criticised the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and justified their tirade by saying the TMC had given the voters a guarantee that the government would be clean and straight-forward.

The speakers said they were giving the DMK time till 2001, adding the government should be clean and welfare-oriented.

Moopanar said the credit for not dismissing the Bihar Government should go to President K R Narayanan. The Bharatiya Janata Party Government at the Centre should also be commended for not pressing for the dismissal, he said.

He added that the family members of freedom fighter Tirupur Kumaran had expressed a desire for a memorial tobe raised for his wife Rajammal. This would be conveyed to the government and if it did not respond, the TMC would come forward to erect the memorial.

Moopanar said Coimbatore district was famous for its textile mills and hoped that the government would soon find a solution for the crisis faced by the industry.

Former Finance minister P Chidambaram said there was no difference between the former AIADMK government and the DMK regime. Kamaraj rule was not something that belonged to the past, but was an ideal for the future.

It was he who had first brought in reservation, Chidambaram said, adding the BJP had opposed the reservation policy, and toppled the V P Singh government over the Mandal Commission report. The TMC, however, had announced that there would be no compromise with the BJP, he said.

The DMK, which had first stumbled, was now in search of a Third Front. Chief Minister M Karunanidhi had said at the time of elections that the TMC, which was a poll ally, could pull up the DMK if it erred. Whenthere was a crisis in the Karunanidhi government, the TMC had solidly stood behind him.

Therefore, the TMC had every right to criticise the DMK Government, he said.

Chidambaram said he would not deny that ``several good things'' had taken place during DMK rule. However, recent elections to the cooperatives had not taken place ``properly'', he said. Elections were due to the Dairy Development Department.

Further, 41 unions had sprung up in Coimbatore district alone, and ``though it was said that there should not be two unions in one place, over 100 unions had been registered''. There had been a perceptible difference between the AIADMK and DMK governments in the first one-and-a-half years after Karunandhi assumed office. But there was none now, he said.

Chidambaram observed that for creating more employment opportunities, an universal and scientific approach was required. He said the people of Tamil Nadu, who had elected Dravidian parties in the last 31 years, should give the TMC a chance this timearound.

Observing the need to resolve the crisis faced by the textile industries, the former finance minister called for implementing the suggestion of paying Rs 1,000 per month to each textile worker for one year. He also urged the CM to implement his offer of slashing down sales tax and urged the Centre to waive Customs duty for textile-related industries, so as to help them.

Member of Parliament Peter Alphonse derided the Opposition for suspecting the TMC's political integrity when it suggested the inclusion of Congress in the then United Front Cabinet, and pointed out that the Communists had now subscribed to this idea, so as to have a secular government.

Leader of the Opposition in the State Assembly S Balakrishnan suggested that a monthly dole of Rs 150 be given to all unemployed graduates. He urged the government to attend to the issue of elections to dairy co-operatives in the State and wanted an end to malpractices in the form of enrolling new societies.

Former minister S R Balasubramaniamsaid an efficient government ought to be at the helm of affairs in Tamil Nadu, where agricultural produce did not receive sufficient remuneration and textile mills and engineering industries were being closed down.

Former Union Minister Danushkoti Adityan said the TMC will not hesitate to mobilise public support to launch an agitation against the government, if they did not mend their ways.

Gnanasekharan, Vellore member of the Legislative Assembly, said that TMC would not hesitate to function like a responsible opposition. Re-elections had been demanded because malpractices were alleged in the co-operative society elections. But there had been no decision on this yet. Corruption was rampant, he alleged.