Meeting with Tamil Nadu CM still on the cards, says Anwar

Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim says the plan for a bilateral meeting with Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay remains on the cards, and that it can take place either in Putrajaya or Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

Anwar, who is currently in India, was supposed to make a working visit to Chennai after attending the 18th BRICS Leaders Summit here, before heading to Keralam, another state in South India.

However, Chennai was dropped at the eleventh hour.

“It is not true (that Chennai did not reciprocate). From the beginning, the chief minister’s office said they were trying to adjust his schedule as he had prior commitments and I had only a very small window between New Delhi, Keralam and Maldives visit.

“Even then, he tried to accommodate, and he had a major investment mission and other programmes planned. So finally I said to him, I will continue to Keralam and Maldives and I can’t proceed with the Tamil Nadu visit,” Anwar, who is also the finance minister, said in an exclusive interview with Thanthi TV.

Reiterating that both sides had tried to align their calendars amid prior commitments, he said that goodwill remained strong.

Anwar also praised Vijay for his early momentum and appeal among young voters while calling for a long-view approach to power anchored in values, patience and practical wisdom.

He described him as “a new voice of reason, of principles and of good governance”.

“When I spoke to him (Vijay), I always told him that the challenge when you are here in power is to sustain the wisdom to navigate because in the real world, the battles will be different from what you aim to do,” he said.

He also praised Vijay’s approach, noting his zeal for reforms as well as to address poverty and corruption.