Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin announced a series of welfare measures targeted at the Muslim community, including the establishment of a third Waqf Tribunal in Coimbatore and an increase in pensions for Ulemas registered with the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board.
As a government that opposes three-language policy of the central government, the DMK has promised to appoint Urdu teachers if they come to power. It is noteworthy that teachers are protesting across the state demanding permanent jobs and equal wages for equal work.
This promise reeks of minority appeasement by the DMK.
மும்மொழி திட்டத்திற்கு எதிர்ப்பு, உருது ஆசிரியர் பணியிடங்களை நிரப்பு – இதுதான் டுபாக்கூர் மாடல்.
உருது மட்டும் வட மொழி இல்லையா? என்ன பித்தலாட்டம் இது? pic.twitter.com/vtrBj1Bkgv
— Krishna Kumar Murugan (@ikkmurugan) January 28, 2026
Addressing the State Mahalla Jamaats Conference organised by the Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) near Kumbakonam, Stalin said the monthly pension for registered Ulemas would be raised from ₹3,000 to ₹5,000, while the family pension would be increased from ₹1,500 to ₹2,500. The conference saw participation from office-bearers of around 8,000 Jamaats across Tamil Nadu.
The Chief Minister further announced that, in the first phase, 1,000 Ulemas would receive an enhanced subsidy of ₹50,000 for the purchase of two-wheelers. Other announcements included the creation of Kabaristans in city corporation areas where burial grounds are currently unavailable and the filling of 10 vacant Urdu language teacher posts in government high schools and higher secondary schools.
Using the platform to sharpen his political messaging ahead of the Assembly elections, Stalin asserted that only the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance had the strength to defeat what he described as the “anti-people” All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam–Bharatiya Janata Party alliance.
“The only state in the country which is safe for Muslims is Tamil Nadu. The DMK has been protecting minorities and hence incidents like mob lynching could not rear its head here,” Stalin claimed.
He alleged that attempts to disturb communal harmony in the state had failed, and accused opposition parties of forming alliances “in their own interest” by remaining “servile” through threats involving central agencies such as the Enforcement Directorate, CBI and Income Tax Department.
Referring to the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), Stalin accused AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami of betraying Muslims by supporting the legislation. “But for AIADMK’s support, the CAA would have been defeated in the Rajya Sabha,” he said, reiterating that the DMK government had declared that the CAA would not be implemented in Tamil Nadu.
Stalin also recalled the DMK’s opposition to the Triple Talaq Bill and the Waqf Amendment Bill, warning that if the BJP-led alliance were to come to power in the state, it would “ruin the developed state.” He claimed that only the DMK alliance had the “courage and strength” to prevent such an outcome.
Pointing out that the DMK cadre had begun door-to-door election campaigns, Stalin urged IUML workers, particularly women and youth, to actively campaign for candidates who would “protect and enable their growth.”
Presiding over the conference, IUML president KM Kader Mohideen said his party and Mahalla Jamaat members would work to ensure the continuation of what he described as the Dravidian Model government.
Meanwhile, addressing a separate gathering in Tiruchirappalli, Stalin announced that the DMK would hold a massive public conference in the district on 8 March 2026, stating that around 10 lakh people were expected to participate.
Source: The New Indian Express
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