Tamil Nadu Elections: EPS Makes Drug Abuse a Poll Point, Says Ganja Reaching Hands Of Students Exposes Stalin’s Misgovernance

Chennai: The AIADMK has launched a sharp attack on the ruling DMK after a Class 11 student from a government school in Vyasarpadi, Chennai, was reportedly found in possession of ganja.

Reacting to the incident, Edappadi K. Palaniswami, General Secretary of the AIADMK and Leader of the Opposition, said the episode reflected a complete breakdown of governance under the DMK government led by Chief Minister M K Stalin.

“This shocking incident is not an isolated lapse. It is living proof of the total failure of the Chief Minister and his government,” he said. 

Further, calling the incident deeply disturbing, Palaniswami said it was not an isolated lapse but evidence of a larger failure by the state government. He alleged that narcotic substances had entered spaces meant for education and growth, putting the future of students at serious risk.

Drawing a comparison with his party’s tenure, Palaniswami said that when AIADMK was in power, laptops were distributed to Class 11 students in government schools to promote education and opportunity. In contrast, he claimed that under the present DMK regime, drugs had reached the hands of schoolchildren, which he described as a disgrace unprecedented in Tamil Nadu.

“When the AIADMK was in power, we placed laptops in the hands of Class 11 students studying in government schools to promote education, knowledge, and opportunity. Today, under the DMK regime, ganja has reached the hands of a school student. This is a disgrace Tamil Nadu has never witnessed before,” he added.

The Leader of the Opposition further accused the Chief Minister of remaining indifferent despite the growing threat posed by narcotics. He said a government that stays silent while drugs destroy the lives of students fails in its fundamental duty to protect the state’s future.

“A Chief Minister who watches silently while drugs destroy the lives of schoolchildren is a curse on this state,” he said. 

Palaniswami also alleged that the DMK government has acted as a mute spectator while ganja and other narcotic substances spread across the state. He claimed that the administration has betrayed the youth of Tamil Nadu through its inaction.

“By acting as a mute spectator and failing to curb the spread of ganja and other narcotic substances, the Stalin-model government has betrayed Tamil Nadu’s youth and its future generations,” he said.  

He pointed out that he has repeatedly raised concerns about the rising drug menace since the DMK came to power,  Palaniswami said the government had failed to take meaningful steps to address the issue. He criticised what he described as casual responses from the ruling dispensation instead of decisive action.

Calling for accountability, the AIADMK leader urged the government to order a thorough investigation into how narcotics reached a school student and to take firm steps to eradicate drugs from the state. He asserted that the remaining period of the DMK government’s tenure must be used to act decisively, warning that the future of children cannot be compromised due to negligence.

“At the very least, the DMK government must act decisively in the remaining period of its rule. The future of our children cannot be sacrificed due to this government’s negligence,” he asserted.