Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu told a rally on Thursday that the national debt could be reduced by around ₹ 3 lakh crore if the Union government clears the state’s outstanding dues.
Responding to AIADMK MLA P. Thangamani, who spoke about the reduction in GST rates during a discussion on the demands for first supplementary grants, Mr. Thennarasu said that due to the rationalization of GST rates, the tax revenue of the states has gone down, thereby increasing their financial burden. He also said that the Union government has not released the GST compensation cess owed to the state.
He said that the AIADMK, which is in alliance with the BJP, should urge the Center to release the pending dues of Tamil Nadu. Leader of Opposition Edappadi K. Palaniswami intervened and said the DMK and its allies, who have 39 MPs in the Lok Sabha, should raise the issue in Parliament.
Meanwhile, Chief Minister MK Stalin said that MPs from Tamil Nadu have been constantly raising the issue in the Lok Sabha and the state government has been constantly pressing it in the GST Council meeting. Accusing the BJP government at the Center of acting in a biased manner, he said he had repeatedly raised the issue of pending Tamil Nadu dues during his meetings with the Prime Minister. He also urged the AIADMK to put pressure on the Centre.
Mr. Palaniswami said that when he met Union Home Minister Amit Shah, he requested the release of funds for the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS) of the state, following which the funds were released. Rural Development Minister I Periyasamy intervened and said more than ₹1,000 crore was still waiting to be released by the Center to the state.
Mr. Thennarasu said the DMK government is paying ₹ 1.40 lakh crore as interest on the debt inherited from the previous AIADMK regime. During the AIADMK regime, Tamil Nadu’s debt rose to ₹ 2.11 crore in 2015-16, an increase of 108% from 2011-12. Subsequently, by the end of the next term of the AIADMK between 2016-17 and 2020-21, the national debt further increased to ₹ 4.80 lakh crore, a 128% increase. At present, the national debt stands at ₹ 9.21 crore, which is a relatively lower increase of 93% during DMK’s tenure, the minister added.
Published – 16 Oct 2025 20:05 IST
