In a recent interview with left-leaning and the unofficial DMK-mouthpiece The News Minute, Tamil Nadu Minister for Industries and Investment, TRB Rajaa, sparked controversy with his disparaging comments targeting Gujarat and the BJP-led central government. Rajaa’s remarks, laden with divisive rhetoric, not only criticized Gujarat’s capabilities but also painted a biased narrative against the BJP and the central government led by the BJP.
During the interview, Rajaa made incendiary statements, asserting, “You don’t have that kind of brains in Gujarat.” Why did he say this? These remarks came as a response to a question by TNM’s Pooja Prasanna when she asked about how the Chief Minister had spoken about how the investments were being driven to Gujarat. TRB Rajaa said, “It is not being driven to Gujarat, some of them some of it is being diverted to Gujarat. Very very unfair. They’ve (business owners) been arm-twisted there into other into BJP-ruled States but the sad part is when they take them to such states when the investments go to such states, it doesn’t thrive there. That’s the basic problem with the BJP is that they don’t understand states, they don’t understand India. They don’t understand plurality, they don’t understand talent, they don’t understand diversity, and they don’t understand the talent that each state has. Tamil Nadu is the talent capital of India we have the best talent in the world because of the best education system because they built it over 100 years.”
While slipping into peddling the Dravidian agenda, he claimed the mid-day meal scheme was introduced by the Justice Party. He said, “It didn’t happen overnight it happened over several regimes right this is the Dravidian model of governance so we started very back in the 1920s with the mid-day meal scheme from the Justice party. So when we’ve done this over 100 years, something which takes that long and is built upon such a strong foundation, should not be played around with and we’ve done this for India we’re not doing for Tamil we’re doing this for India. The people who have studied, who come out of the institutions from Tamil Nadu, it applies worldwide in all the institutions. you call them Indians right you don’t call them just Tamil so we’ve done this for India and we are extremely proud of it.”
It is noteworthy that owing to massive reservations in Tamil Nadu, brain drain happened in the state and several bright minds moved out of TN (India) and settled in plum positions abroad.
Talking about “talent” in TN, he said, “Now when you take investments which let’s say especially high-end investments which need high-end jobs, technically skilled jobs, skilled labor that kind of job you won’t get anywhere else in India. that’s the strength of Tamil Nadu. certain states have certain talents, certain strengths.”
He then spoke about red-category industries and advocated that they must be sent to desert states because of the landscape and the lack of talent for high-skilled technical jobs. He said, “So, in Tamil Nadu for instance, we cannot bring loads of red-category industries. Take that to Desert states. take that to let’s say your Gujarat or anywhere else where you have loads of land just plain vast arid land. but when you need technical skills you need talent you don’t have that there. You don’t have the kind of talent that you have in Tamil Nadu you don’t have that kind of brains in Gujarat. Then why would you want to do this? Take loads of solar, wind, you have loads of land, lakhs and lakhs of acres of vacant arid land, put that to good use. Why would you want to take these jobs and you’ve taken something which you can’t do and now you look at the state of that company those investors I don’t want to name them because many of them have called us back, they’ve apologized first.”
Such derogatory remarks, aimed at Gujarat’s intellectual prowess, reflect a troubling trend of regional chauvinism and unwarranted denigration of other states. By casting aspersions on Gujarat’s intellectual capacity, Rajaa not only disrespected the people of Gujarat but also perpetuated a false narrative of superiority for Tamil Nadu.
Furthermore, Rajaa’s comments extended to allegations of unfair practices by the BJP-led central government in diverting investments away from Tamil Nadu to Gujarat. He claimed, without substantiated evidence, that investments were being unfairly redirected to Gujarat, thereby insinuating favoritism by the central government towards BJP-ruled states. Such baseless accusations only serve to sow seeds of discord and mistrust among states and deepen political polarization.
Rajaa’s unfounded insinuations about Gujarat’s competency and his unsubstantiated claims regarding investment diversion not only lack credibility but also demonstrate a blatant disregard for facts and responsible discourse.
By propagating such divisive rhetoric, The News Minute and Rajaa not only undermine the spirit of cooperative federalism but also jeopardise inter-state relations.
TNM’s role in amplifying Rajaa’s divisive narrative without critically scrutinising his claims raises concerns about journalistic integrity and impartiality. By providing a platform for Rajaa’s inflammatory remarks without proper fact-checking or counterbalancing perspectives, TNM has contributed to the dissemination of misinformation and further fueled inter-state tensions.
Amid Tamil Nadu’s election campaign, political leaders and media outlets alike must uphold principles of honesty, fairness, and respect for diverse perspectives. TRB Rajaa’s inflammatory remarks and TNM’s uncritical reporting not only undermine the democratic process but also sow seeds of discord and division, ultimately detracting from the collective pursuit of progress and unity in India.
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