On 25 May 2023, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin wrote a letter to Union Home Minister Amit Shah after reports emerged about Amul setting up processing plants in Krishnagiri district and procuring milk from cooperatives in Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Vellore, Ranipet, and Thirupathur, areas.
In his letter CM Stalin petitioned Home Minister Amit Shah to desist Amul from procuring milk from Tamil Nadu dairy farmers.
Many saw this as the DMK taking a leaf out of their ally Congress’s playbook, trying to pit state-owned Aavin issue with Amul like how Congress pitted Karnataka brand Nandini against Amul in the run up to the Assembly elections.
But that wasn’t the only angle in which the letter was criticized.
BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai roasted MK Stalin for addressing the letter to Amit Shah instead of the respective body which resolves issues between different milk cooperatives.
While speaking at a BJP meeting organized in Chennai on 29 May 2023, Annamalai said “Supposing a school child gets fever, and he/she writes a leave letter saying ‘Miss miss, Please give me one day leave’, whom will the letter be addressed to? To the school teacher. Have you ever seen anyone write it to the school owner?”
He further said “Where is Amul? Kaira District Co-operative Milk Producers’ Union (Amul) is headquartered in Gujarat. Our leader (referring to Stalin) is directly writing the letter to Amit Shah ji. In his 9 years of service, Amit Shah ji would not have encountered such a wrong letter addressed to him. Thank god he didn’t write to Modi ji.” to a jubilant audience.
திரு அமித் ஷா அவர்களின் 9 ஆண்டு கால வரலாற்றில் ஸ்டாலின் அவர்கள் எழுதியதைப் போல் தவறான கடிதத்தை யாரும் எழுதி இருக்க மாட்டார்கள்
– மாநில தலைவர் திரு.@annamalai_k #influencersMeet #Annamalai pic.twitter.com/ZDhC85egPr
— BJP Tamilnadu (@BJP4TamilNadu) May 31, 2023
After this video went viral on social media, DMK MP TR Baalu’s son, the party’s IT wing head and currently a Minister in Stalin’s cabinet TRB Rajaa put a tweet justifying CM Stalin addressing the letter to Home Minister Amit Shah who also handles the portfolio of cooperatives.
“#Amul is a cooperative and the Union Minister for Cooperation, which oversees policies for cooperatives, is Honourable Thiru #AmitShah. TN BJP seems to have zero knowledge about their own #government and of #governance too.”, TRB Rajaa said.
Looks like the TN unit of the BJP needs to read much more than the 20000+ books that it already says it has : ) The Constitution would be a good start but let them atleast read the List of Ministries in the Union Cabinet ! #Amul is a cooperative and the Union Minister for… pic.twitter.com/5QV9whz6jB
— Dr. T R B Rajaa (@TRBRajaa) June 1, 2023
Responding to the tweet, Annamalai slammed TRB Rajaa calling him a product of nepotism and the “chairman of DMK dimwits”.
He clarified that the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB), which operates under the Ministry of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry & Dairying, is responsible for resolving the cross-border marketing issues involving prominent dairy brands such as Amul, Nandini, and Milma.
A man who runs on his father’s legacy & the chairman of DMK dimwits will need some schooling on the functions of various Ministries in the Central government.
It is National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) that is resolving the cross-border marketing issues between Amul &… https://t.co/keq50iSQea
— K.Annamalai (@annamalai_k) June 1, 2023
The Issue
Amul has reportedly set up chilling centres and processing plant Krishnagiri district with plans to procure milk from cooperatives in Krishnagiri, Dharmapuri, Vellore, Ranipet, and Thirupathur, areas which the DMK government has opposed saying it will lead to “unhealthy competition”.
Howvever, Aavin’s daily procurement of milk from farmers is a small share, 35 LLPD (Lakh Litres Per Day), compared to the state’s total production of 244 LLPD which amounts to just 14%. Aavin’s average milk procurement from farmers has dropped to 32 LLPD since May 2021, when the DMK took power in the state.
Aavin purchases milk from farmers at a rate of Rs 32-34 per litre, whereas Amul purchases at a rate of Rs 34-38 per liter, which benefits milk farmers. This has made people wonder whether MK Stalin is speaking on behalf of private dairy companies in Tamil Nadu who are concerned that Amul will reduce their market share.
On the other hand, Amul is one of the sponsors of SunRisers Hyderabad IPL team which is owned by Kalanithi Maran, brother of DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran and a member of Stalin’s family.
Many on social media had said that while the DMK-family has made money from Amul by having the company sponsor their team, the DMK government is denying Tamil Nadu farmers to make money from Amul.
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