Chennai : Former Tamil Nadu BJP president K Annamalai has slammed Chief Minister Joseph Vijay over his recent London visit, arguing that the UK was not the right place to seek investment for Tamil Nadu. Today, India is a country with a USD 4.1 trillion economy, while the UK has a USD 3.4 trillion economy. Vijay undertook a six-day official visit to the UK from September 10, leading a state delegation with a stated focus on attracting investments and exploring industrial and motorsports opportunities.
The Tamil Nadu government said the trip resulted in investment commitments worth nearly Rs 15,000 crore and more than 10,000 direct and indirect jobs. “I know London well. It is a dead economy. There is no money there. The UK’s growth is just 1 per cent. If you go there and ask them to invest money in Tamil Nadu, what money are they going to give?” he said. “What the Chief Minister should do is, rather than taking an Emirates flight from Chennai to London, take an IndiGo flight from Chennai to Coimbatore or Madurai,” Annamalai said.
Go to Bombay, go to Delhi, go to Bengaluru. Bring investment from there. You don’t have to go abroad for everything,” the former IPS officer added. Annamalai also took a swipe at the attention surrounding Vijay’s meetings and public appearances during the visit. Did he meet this person? Did he meet that person? Did they see him? I am talking about this unnecessary politics,” he said. BJP state president Nainar Nagendran had also criticised the trip, describing it as a “pleasure tour” and alleging that companies already operating in India were being presented as fresh investments secured through the visit.
Annamalai argued that the state should first tap the investment potential within Tamil Nadu and urged Vijay to visit the state’s major industrial centres more frequently. “When so many people in the local economy are ready to invest, go and encourage the local industrialists in Tamil Nadu. They have money. They are ready to invest, he said. He also pointed to Indian companies investing in the UK as an argument for greater focus on domestic capital.”
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