Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, on Sunday (April 5, 2026), said it was against democratic principles to surrender the State’s rights and adjust with the Centre, something which, he said, would cause more harm. “It is surprising that you think the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would do good to Tamil Nadu if we made such adjustments. It would not do any good; instead, it would cause more harm. It is slavery,” he said in his first interview of the election season in the middle of campaigning in Virudhunagar.

He said that Tamil Nadu did not substantially benefit during the erstwhile government of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), headed by Edappadi K. Palaniswami, which had made adjustments with the BJP government at the Centre. Edited excerpts: