Tamil Nadu

Elections

The AMMK also released its final list of bye-poll candidates, where four disqualified MLAs have been re-nominated.

PTI

TTV Dhinakaran’s trusted lieutenant and former MLA Thanga Tamilselvan will be pitted against Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister and AIADMK Coordinator O Panneerselvam’s son P Raveendranath Kumar at the Theni parliamentary constituency. With less than a month to go before Tamil Nadu goes to polls, AMMK Deputy General Secretary TTV Dhinakaran has released the second and final list of candidates for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections as well as the 18 Assembly bye-polls due in the state. The year-old party, which has decided to go it alone in the Lok Sabha polls as well as the assembly bye-elections, has given a ticket to former AIADMK Sholingur MLA NG Parthiban who will be contesting from Arakkonam. Former AIADMK Anaicut MLA K Pandurangan will be contesting from the Vellore Lok Sabha constituency. Former state minister P Palaniappan will be contesting from Dharmapuri, facing off with the AIADMK alliance’s Anbumani Ramadoss of PMK, who is the sitting MP and the DMK’s S Senthil Kumar. P Santhanakrishnan will be contesting from Chennai North, the parliamentary constituency where MLA TTV Dhinakaran’s RK Nagar constituency is housed. Dhinakaran stormed to power from RK Nagar in December 2017, the constituency previously held by late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. Former MLA G Senthamizhan has been given the ticket to contest the Arani seat while lawyer and politician P Jothimurugan will be the party’s candidate from Dindigul. M Bhuvaneswaran who will be contesting from Thoothukudi will be up against two political bigwigs: DMK Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi and BJP State President Tamilisai Soundararajan. Other MP candidates from the party are: S Ganeshkumar for Krishnagiri, A Gnanasekar for Thiruvanamalai, Gomukhi Manian for Kallakurichi, S Paramasiva Ayyappan for Virudhunagar, KR Karthik for Cuddalore and EE Lakshmanan Kanyakumari. The AMMK's second list of candidates comes less than a week after its first list, which confirmed that the party would be contesting all 39 seats in the state as well as the lone Puducherry seat. While the party’s first list saw nine of 18 MLAs who had been disqualified for declaring their support to TTV Dhinakaran getting re-nominated, the second list was different. Only four former MLAs have been renominated. The others have either been dropped or given a Lok Sabha ticket. Three former MLAs-- Thanga Tamilselvan, P Palaniappan and NG Parthiban -- have been given a Lok Sabha ticket each. It may also be noted that bye-polls to Ottapidaram, Aravakurichi and Thiruparankundram Assembly constituencies will not take place on April 18 when the state simultaneously votes in the Lok Sabha since petitions on the bye-polls are still pending in court. The party’s other bye-poll candidates are: TG Mani for Shollingur, DK Rajendran for Pappireddipatti, R Thangadurai for Nilakkottai (SC), S Kamaraj for Thiruvarur, M Rangasamy for Thanjavur, R Jayakumar for Andipatti, Kathirgamu for Periyakulam(SC) and K Jothimani for Vilathikulam.

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Controversy

A quick look at the DMK's manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha Election reveals that the pages Madhu Kishwar mentions do not even exist.

Priyanka Thirumurthy

Indian academic Madhu Purnima Kishwar took to Twitter on Thursday to insinuate that the DMK had scant regard for lands belonging to Hindu temples in Tamil Nadu. As per her tweet, the Dravidian major's manifesto had promised that “people occupying encroached temple lands will be regularised and ownership transferred” and right below that she claimed that the DMK had assured “Encroached Waqf properties will be reclaimed and handed over to wakf”. DMK Manifesto Page 112.. People occupying encroached Temple lands will be regularised and ownership transferred. Page 85.. Encroached Wakq properties will be reclaimed and handed over to wakf.. — MadhuPurnima Kishwar (@madhukishwar) March 21, 2019 The tweet since being posted has gotten over 6000 retweets, especially from supporters of the BJP who have chosen to outrage over the alleged 'anti-Hindu, pro-Muslim' stance of the DMK. However, a quick look at the DMK's manifesto for the 2019 Lok Sabha Election reveals that the pages the academic mentions do not even exist. Her references date back to the party's 2016 manifesto for Assembly Elections. However, she has, according to the DMK, not only misquoted the poll document but also misrepresented the stance of the party on the matter. On page 111 of the DMK's 2016 English manifesto, under the sub heading 'Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowment Department' (HRCE), the document states, "Besides regulating and collecting rent to be received by the temple trust from temple lands, a Land Bank will be established for protecting vacant land belonging to temple. Moreover, a high level committee led by a retired judge will be constituted for considering the demand of people, who are offering to purchase the temple land within the legal frame work." Page 85 in the 2016 manifesto, meanwhile, which carries content on welfare of minorities, states that “Properties of Wakf Board will be recovered from encroachments and protected”. While Madhu Kishwar quote tweeted another Twitter user, who claimed that the source of their allegation was from DMK’s 2016 Tamil manifesto, the search result for the page “could not be found”. DMK Manifesto Page 112 People occupying encroached Temple lands will be regularised and ownership transferred. Page 85 Encroached Wakq properties will be reclaimed and handed over to wakf. pic.twitter.com/vtiApgFnjh — Chowkidar रंगा - ரங்கா (@ranganaathan) March 21, 2019 However, the party’s Tamil manifesto was the same as the one in English and made no such promise, as claimed by Madhu Kishwar. While several Twitter users have called out the academician for posting false information from her handle, the DMK alleges that this is a deliberate act of hate mongering. The party has also complained against Madhu Kishwar to the Election Commission for 'promoting hate between two communities'. "This topic doesn't feature at all in the DMK's 2019 manifesto. This is a deliberate attempt to show us as anti-Hindu. She is a known BJP bhakt and this is an act of hate mongering," alleges DMK spokesperson A Saravanan. "The DMK respects all religions and has never treated any one religion unfairly. We are the ones who established the HRCE and appointed a minister to administer the temple properties and welfare. While only upper caste Hindus classify as Hindus for the BJP, we see all castes as the same," he adds. This news is so FAKE that it need not be answered but I will. There are no Pages 85 & 112. Please issue a clarification. https://t.co/QhQZ7oao1i— Manuraj S (@manuraj1983) March 22, 2019 With practice, she's getting better at misleading people. Very cleverly, she didn't mention which manifesto this is from. This is not from DMK's 2019 manifesto, but to her defense, she never said that. It is from 2016 manifesto, but she didn't say that either. Half-truth! https://t.co/Md5ToDvQmB— Vivek (@ivivek_nambiar) March 22, 2019

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Politics

A national award-winning choreographer, Kala Master has worked in various films from the age of 12.

TNM Staff

With less than a month to go for polls in Tamil Nadu, TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK got a boost in star power, with popular choreographer Kala Master joining the party. She officially joined the party on Friday in the presence of AMMK Deputy General Secretary and RK Nagar MLA TTV Dhinakaran and former MLA P Vetrivel. Kala, popularly known as ‘Kala Master’, is a trained classical dancer. She started her career as a choreographer when she was 12, getting a break through her brother-in-law Raghu. Her first film was renowned filmmaker Balachander’s Punnagai Mannan, that starred Kamal Hassan and Revathi. Since then she has worked with a number of leading filmmakers like KS Ravikumar, Mani Ratnam, Priyadarshan and others and worked in over 4,000 songs in various Indian languages and a few foreign languages. She opened a dance school named ‘Kalaalaya’ in 1993, dedicated to cinematic dance. Kala is also the director and one of the judges of the dance reality show ‘Maanaada Mayilaada’ that airs on Vijay TV. Her sister Brindha is also a popular choreographer. She won a National Award for Best Choreography in the year 2000 for Malayalam film Kochu Kochu Santhoshangal, and the Tamil Nadu State Award for best choreography for the film Chandramukhi. Kala’s entry into the AMMK comes days after playback singer Mano joined the party. Mano has recorded over 30,000 songs in Indian languages including Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Bengali. Popular songs that he has sung include Shenbagame Shenbagame (Enga Ooru paattukkaaran), Mukkala Mukkabla (Kadhalan), Azhagiya Laila (Ullathai Allithaa) and Thillana Thillana (Muthu). He is also known for dubbing for actor Rajinikanth in Telugu. Mano is one of the judges in Airtel Super SInger Junior. He has won Tamil Nadu State Awards for Best male singer, Filmfare award, Tamil Nadu government's Kalaimamani Award and Nandi award from the government of Andhra Pradesh. Tamil Nadu, of course, is no stranger to the film world, with a number of stars making their foray into state politics over the years. DMK’s M Karunanidhi, who was a screenwriter, AIADMK’s MG Ramachandran, his wife Janaki Ramachandran and MGR’s political heir Jayalalithaa, were leading actors before becoming political leaders and Chief Ministers of the state. The state goes to polls in a single phase on April 18. The AMMK will be going it alone in all 39 constituencies, while DMK has tied up with the Congress, Left parties, the MDMK, VCK, IJK and KMDK. The AIADMK is in an alliance with the BJP, PMK, DMDK, PT, TMC and the New Justice Party.

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Crime

In 2014, five men were arrested for gang-raping and murdering a 10-year-old girl in Vazhapadi, Salem.

Megha Kaveri

After five years, the sharp observation skills and persistence of two investigating officers secured a conviction in a child rape and murder case. On Thursday, the Salem District Mahila Court awarded double life imprisonment to the five accused in the gruesome rape and murder of a 10-year-old girl in Vazhapadi, Salem in 2014. The case dates back to February 14, 2014, when five men between the ages of 22 and 31 kidnapped, gang-raped and murdered a 10-year-old girl from a village near Vazhapadi in Salem district. In a horrifying act, the men had hung the girl’s naked body from a tree near a temple in the village, which was discovered by villagers the next morning. The girl’s father filed a police complaint and the police arrested five men in relation to the crime. Boopathi (31), Anandhababu, known as ‘Snake Babu’ (29), Anandhan (22), Prabakaran (26) and Balakrishnan (28) were remanded under sections 302 (Murder) of the IPC, sections 5(g) (Gang penetrative sexual assault) and 6 (Aggravated penetrative sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012. However, securing the conviction was not an easy task for the investigators. Evidence documents were not marked properly Speaking to TNM, N Suriyamoorthy, the Deputy Superintendent of Police, Vazhapadi, says that the path has been arduous. He was transferred to Vazhapadi in 2017 and regularly attended every court hearing on the case. In May 2018, Suriyamoorthy discovered lapses in the way the trial was progressing. “During the hearings, I noticed that some of the documentary evidence was not marked properly by the prosecution,” he told TNM. An unmarked piece of evidence can lead to the acquittal of the accused, since it effectively means that there is no evidence of the crime, Suriyamoorthy says. In the Vazhapadi case, the documents that were missed included a postmortem report of the victim and the medical examination reports of all the accused. “I am not sure how this got missed out, but I am a lawyer and hence I realised the implication of this error. In sexual offences, getting eye-witnesses is rare. So these documents were of utmost importance for the accused to be convicted. So I took this lapse to the notice of the SP, who asked me for a letter explaining my observations,” Suriyamoorthy explains. By this time, the defence counsel had started taking advantage of this lapse, he adds. SP helps in securing a new prosecutor SP Georgy George then submitted the letter with his recommendation to change the public prosecutor in the case. “The SP actually submitted it to the district collector and secured the order in a span of 24 hours,” Suriyamoorthy says. Based on this, in 2018, advocate Dhanasekaran was appointed as the prosecutor in the case, replacing advocate Gandhimathi. The new prosecutor and the police then marked all documents and also had to re-examine five witnesses to take the case forward. Defence moves HC to seek quashing of proceedings Weeks before the verdict was about to be delivered, another obstacle surfaced after the defence counsel filed a writ petition in the Madras High Court. “They wanted the High Court to intervene and order that [the Mahila Court] was wrong to have re-examined the witnesses and change the prosecutor. We filed a counter for that. The High Court dismissed the petition with stern remarks explaining the seriousness of the case and the casual nature of the petition,” Suriyamoorthy says. This paved the way for smooth conviction by Mahila Court. Moving forward, Suriyamoorthy expects the defence counsel to file an appeal in the High Court against this. However, he feels confident that the accused will be punished for their crimes. “The accused have been convicted under different sections and punishment has been awarded accordingly. The Mahila Court judge has also ordered that all these punishments will run in parallel. So in the High Court, even if one or two sections get acquitted, the remaining will stay. I am sure that the life term will also stay,” he says.

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Court

The court also dismissed the plea of the unsuccessful DMK candidate P Saravanan to declare him the victor.

IANS

The Madras High Court on Friday declared as invalid the election in 2016 of the AIAMDK's AK Bose, who died last year, in a by-election from the Tiruparankundram Assembly constituency. The court also dismissed the plea of the unsuccessful DMK candidate P Saravanan to declare him the victor. The Election Commission has deferred the by-election for this constituency citing this case despite the death of Bose due to cardiac arrest in 2018. Saravanan filed the election petition raising doubts on affixing of the thumb impression by late AIADMK General Secretary J Jayalalithaa in Bose's election documents when she was admitted in Apollo Hospital. The court declared Bose's election as void as there was no proof that Jayalalithaa was in a conscious mind to affix her thumb impression. A report in The Hindu states that the Court held that two top Election Commission (EC) officials had “played a fraud in connivance with the ruling party” by accepting the AIADMK supremo’s thumb impression on the candidate’s nomination papers. Justice P Velmurugan came down heavily on the then Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) Rajesh Lakhoni as well as Principal Secretary to the EC K.F. Wilfred. In September 2016, Jayalalithaa was admitted to Apollo Hospital. In October, she had an inflamed right hand as she had undergone tracheostomy and had to affix her left thumb impression in the documents submitted by the AIADMK candidate. As per the Representation of People Act, a candidate contesting on behalf of a political party has to submit Form B, where their party leader has to authorise the candidate to contest under the party's election symbol. The by-poll in Thiruparankundram was slated for November 19, 2016 and the AIADMK candidate had submitted the papers on October 28 to the Returning Officer.

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Politics

The AIADMK MP from Ramanathapuram who is also the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board Chairman has been accused of appointing non-eligible staff at a MSS Waqf board-run college in Madurai.

TNM Staff

Twitter/ANI

CBI raids were conducted at AIADMK MP Anwar Raajha’s Ramanathapuram residence, the Tamil Nadu Waqf Board premises in Chennai and the MSS Waqf board-run college in Madurai on Friday. The raids were conducted in relation to a job recruitment scam allegedly executed by Anwar, who is the AIADMK MP from Ramanathapuram and Tamil Nadu Waqf Board Chairman. Anwar and his secretaries have been questioned by the CBI for the last two days. According to a news report, a five-member CBI team carried out the raids at all three places following alleged irregularities in the appointment of teaching and non-teaching staff at a Waqf board-run college in Madurai. An FIR was filed by the CBI on March 7, based on a directive received from the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court. A writ petition filed by a person named Sardar Basha had alleged that Jamal Mohideen, the then secretary and correspondent of the MSS Waqf board college in Madurai had criminally conspired with Anwar to appoint non-eligible staff who were without National Eligibility Test or State Level Eligibility Test clearance at the college. According to a report in The Times of India, the petitioner had alleged that between October 2017 and November 2018, they had demanded and accepted illegal payments amounting to Rs 35 lakhs from non-Muslim and Rs 30 lakhs from Muslim candidates. During this period, 30 assistant professors were appointed in the college. The report also states that the amount was allegedly deposited by Jamal in a separate bank account in Kamarajar Salai branch of the City Union Bank in Madurai. MP Anwar was one among the 37 MPs to vote against the Triple Talaq bill in the Parliament. Anwar had called it a “barbaric bill”, following which party MPs had staged a walkout from the House when voting took place.

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Controversy

An exclusive report by ‘The Hindu’ linked the DMK's Arakkonam Lok Sabha candidate, S Jagathrakshakan, to the 'single largest foreign investment' deal in Sri Lanka.

TNM Staff

Facebook: JagathrakshakanS

Former Union Minister for State (I&B) and DMK’s Arakkonam candidate in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, S Jagathrakshakan, is linked to the ‘single largest foreign investment’ deal in Sri Lanka, an explosive new report by The Hindu states. According to the report, the DMK Vanniyar heavyweight’s family runs the Singapore-based Silver Park International Pte Ltd, the company which is investing a part of the whopping USD 1887 million share capital in the deal. The deal is for a USD 3.85 billion oil refinery coming up in the Hambantota industrial zone, located in the country's Southern Province. The report is significant for a number of reasons, according to several experts and watchers TNM has spoken to, especially since it is election year in both the countries. One, for the DMK in Tamil Nadu, the report comes days after it released its poll manifesto for the Lok Sabha elections, reiterating its demand for an ‘independent and credible international probe into the human right violations, war crimes and genocide in Sri Lanka.’ The main opposition party in the state has voiced its stance against the Sri Lankan government and its treatment of Tamils in the country over the years. A leader from the party investing vast sums of money in Sri Lanka warrants an explanation from its top leadership. Two, Sri Lanka’s Presidential elections are due to take place later this year, months after a bitter 51-day political feud between President Maithripala Sirisena and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa. An India-backed project in Sri Lanka at a politically-charged time such as this may invite opposition from Sinhala nationalist parties in the country, say observers in Sri Lanka. As early as September 2017, Mahinda Rajapaksa had accused the Sri Lankan government of 'auctioning' all ‘national assets’ in what was perceived as a veiled reference to an oil facility to be operated by both countries in Sri Lanka's Trincomalee. Thirdly, the project, which is situated close to the Chinese-owned Hambantota port, is also geo-politically important for India even as it manages its neighbour to the north. However, there has been no official mention so far of an Indian connection to the oil refinery. How much money from the Jagathrakshagan family is going into the project? Silver Park International, the company from Singapore, lists Jagathrakshakan’s wife Anusuya, daughter Sri Nisha and son Sundeep Anand as part of its Board of Directors. A search revealed that while the company was reportedly incorporated in 2017, its website was registered in February this year. According to The Hindu, the company is investing 70% of the share capital of USD 1887 million in the project. At today’s exchange rate, the company’s investment stands at about Rs. 9125 crores. Jagathrakshakan’s 2014 affidavit stated that he has a total income of about Rs 15.5 lakhs while his wife had a total income of about Rs 2.04 crores. Is the company fit for the job? The Hindu reports that the latest development in the issue is Oman pulling out of the deal on Wednesday, a day after Sri Lanka’s Board of Investment announced that the country was investing in the project, along with the Singapore-based company. In addition to cements and sand mining, the company's website describes itself as an international oil and gas refinery company. "It is a vertically integrated company operating in all areas of the oil and gas industry, including exploration and production, refining, distribution and marketing, petrochemicals, power generation and trading. It also has renewable energy interests in bio fuels and wind power,"(sic) it states. However, with well-known oil-exporter Oman pulling out, it remains to be seen if Silver Park will be able to pull off the project on its own. Meanwhile, the Oman Oil Company, a commercial company wholly owned by the Government of Oman, had reportedly told the Sri Lankan government that it had 'firm intention' to “participate in equity up to 30%, subject to reaching an agreement between the parties.” Allegations of corruption in the past The large-scale foreign investment also brings to light the politician’s chequered past. A 2009 investigation by the Times Now caught on camera officials from Jagathrakshagan’s Shree Balaji Medical College and Hospital demanding capitation fees from a student. In 2012, the leader was accused of receiving coal allocations from the Puducherry government for a company reportedly owned by his family. TNM has reached out to the DMK and will update this story once it receives a response.

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Lok Sabha 2019

The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee’s former chief, S Thirunnavukkarasar, has been assigned the Trichy seat.

Manasa Rao

The Indian National Congress finally released the first list of its candidates for the Lok Sabha polls from Tamil Nadu. With polling date set for April 18, which is less than a month away, the party had come under criticism for not making its candidates known. Announcing its first list of candidates well past midnight on Saturday, the party gave former Tamil Nadu Congress Committee chief S Thirunnavukkarasar the ticket to the Trichy parliamentary constituency. A leadership change in February had witnessed the party’s state outfit dropping Thirunnavukkarasar in favour of new chief KS Alagiri. The Congress, which is part of the DMK-led alliance in the state, was allotted 10 seats in exchange for its support to the Dravidian party in the assembly bye-polls which are also due in the state. EVKS Elangovan, another former TNCC chief, is the party's candidate for the Theni constituency. The ex-MP and former Union Minister will be fighting against Raveendranath Kumar, son of Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister and AIADMK Coordinator O Panneerselvam. RK Nagar MLA TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK has fielded recently-disqualified Theni MLA Thanga Tamilselvan from the constituency for the Lok Sabha polls. Notably, the party has not named the candidate for its Sivaganga seat, which has reportedly caused infighting within the party. According to one party source, discussions have been ongoing over the seat for a while now. With a number of leaders in the running-- Former Union Minister P Chidambaram, his son Karti Chidambaram, actress and party spokesperson Khusbhu-- the party leadership is hoping to bag the Sivaganga constituency, perceived to be ‘low-hanging fruit’ for the party that it has won nine times in the past. The AIADMK-led alliance is fielding BJP National Secretary H Raja in the seat. Former Puducherry Chief Minister and MLA V Vaithilingam is the party's candidate from the union territory. The national party has given a ticket to writer-politician Jothi Mani for the Karur parliamentary constituency, the sole woman candidate for the state thus far. Jothi Mani will be taking on the AIADMK’s local strongman and Lok Sabha Deputy Speaker M Thambidurai. A long-time Congresswoman, Jothi Mani had previously contested unsuccessfully from the Karur Lok Sabha seat twice: in the 2014 General Elections and the 2011 state assembly elections. Former Virudhunagar MP Manickam Tagore has been given the ticket to the constituency once again. The leader, who has held a number of roles in the All India Congress Committee, will be up against senior DMDK leader R Azhagarsamy of the AIADMK-led alliance. Former Namakkal MLA K Jeyakumar is the party’s candidate from the Thiruvallur reserved constituency. In February, he was elevated as one of TNCC's Working Presidents. Former MLA A Chellakumar, who is reportedly close to Congress chief Rahul Gandhi, is the party's candidate from the Krishnagiri seat. Chellakumar is likely to face stiff competition from AIADMK veteran KP Munusamy. TNCC Working President MK Vishnu Prasad will contest from Arani. Vishnu Prasad is the son of former TNCC president M Krishnaswamy. The leader will be up against incumbent AIADMK MP V Elumalai. Veteran Congressman H Vasanthakumar will be the party's candidate from Kanyakumari. The Kanyakumari seat will witness a direct battle between the two national parties. BJP’s Union Minister of State for Finance and Shipping Pon Radhakrishnan, who is also the sitting Member of Parliament from Kanyakumari, is seeking re-election.

Body 2:

Lok Sabha 2019

However, his total income dropped from Rs 22.89 lakh in 2014 to Rs 9.80 lakh in 2017- 2018.

TNM Staff

DMDK Deputy General Secretary LK Sudhish has reported a meteoric rise in the total value of his moveable assets. The party’s Lok Sabha candidate for the Kallakurichi constituency reported the total value of his family’s moveable assets as Rs 17.18 crore, up from Rs 3.93 crore in 2014, which is a 337% rise. The politician had filed his nomination from the Salem Lok Sabha constituency in 2014. While his personal share of the assets totals to Rs 6.81 crore, his wife Poornajyothi owns Rs 9 crore, his mother Amsaveni owns Rs 29 lakh, his daughter Jannushree owns Rs 71 lakh and his other daughter Keerthana owns Rs 36 lakh. According to Sudhish’s 2019 affidavit, the total assets owned by him and his family amounts to Rs 60.17 crore, a 77% rise from 2014. Sudhish, who has also submitted the names of official Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts as per the Election Commission's norms for this year, has a number of businesses going by the name Ell Kay Yes. His investments include a wedding hall, a logistics company and a warehouse. Curiously, there is a drop in total income shown in the income tax return for 2017- 2018 and 2013- 2014. While total income was Rs 22.89 lakh in 2014, it dropped by 57% in 2017- 2018 to Rs 9.80 lakh. In 2018, his wife purchased a BMW Model 520d luxury line car worth Rs 53.49 lakh. A year earlier, Sudhish bought an Innova tourist sport car for Rs 20 lakh. His daughter, meanwhile, owns a Mercedes Benz worth Rs 25 lakh, purchased in 2016. While Sudhish himself has car loans amounting to Rs 22.39 lakh, the grand total of his family liabilities is at Rs 8.91 crore. The politician, who is the brother-in-law of DMDK founder and actor Vijayakant, has a number of cases against him, including one for inciting violence against journalists. In 2009, LK Sudhish polled over one lakh votes in Kallakurichi where he contested, which was 15.47% of the total number of votes in the constituency. He came third, after the AIADMK and PMK candidates. The DMDK is known to have a strong voter base in the constituency due to Vijayakant's popularity in the region.

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Crime

It has come to light that after the assault, Prakash* and his friends were allegedly involved in an argument with the girl’s father over the girl’s missing mobile phone.

TNM Staff

The Trichy police arrested a 31-year-old advocate on Saturday for sexually assaulting a minor girl. According to reports, the lawyer, *Prakash, lived in a rented home in Trichy and the owner of the house, his wife and their 17-year-old daughter lived in a separate apartment in the same building. A complaint filed by the girl’s mother has alleged that on March 17, her daughter had gone to a shop nearby to buy something, when Prakash spotted her and offered to give her a lift home on his bike. He then allegedly took her to his house and sexually assaulted her. The girl managed to free herself from his clutches and reported the incident to her mother, who filed a police complaint. Upon inquiry with the accused, he confessed to the assault. It also came to light that the girl’s father had entered into an argument with Prakash and two of his friends on March 20 over the girl’s mobile phone which was missing. The father had questioned Prakash on the suspicion that he might have stolen it and the argument ended up in Prakash and his friends verbally abusing and assaulting the father. Based on the complaint of the girl’s mother, an FIR has been registered under sections 7 (Touching private parts of a child with sexual intent) and 8 (Punishment for sexual assault) of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Prakash was arrested and remanded to judicial custody on Saturday. Another FIR has been registered against Prakash and his friends Guru and Marya John Bosco for assault of the minor’s father. In April, KP Prem Ananth, a practising lawyer and former BJP candidate in RK Nagar Assembly election in 2006 was arrested by Erode Railway police for sexually assaulting a nine-year-old girl in a moving train. (*name changed)

Body 2:

Human Interest

The school had a solar-powered system which did not work during rainy and winter seasons.

TNM Staff

The announcement of election dates turned out to be a blessing for a government school in Coimbatore district. A government middle school located in the Thadagam reserve forest area, a region populated by tribals, received an electricity connection after 17 years since the school has been notified as a polling booth. The school is located in Anaikatti in Periyanaickenpalayam block in Coimbatore district and has 47 students who come from the nearby villages on the rolls, according to a report in The New Indian Express. The school serves as the centre for education for children who hail from the three tribal hamlets – Chembukarai, Dhoomanur and Kattusalai – inside the Thadagam reserve forest. These three villages, with around 150 families, got electrified only in 2016. Till the 2016 assembly elections, voters from these hamlets used to travel to Anaikatti, which is 11 kilometres away, to cast their vote. During the 2016 elections, the school was made a polling booth and electricity was arranged using a generator, which led to the interruption of power supply during voting. In order to avoid such a disruption again, the district administration has reportedly provided complete power supply to the school since Friday. Speaking to TNIE, the headmaster of the school said that the school started functioning in 2002 and since then, it had not been given power supply. A few years later, an organisation had installed a solar power system, but it was not sufficient to power fans or lights during the rainy and winter season due to inadequate sunlight. Though an electric post and connection had been provided to the school last year, there was no electricity supply due to metering and wiring issues. The school will now enjoy power supply round-the-clock and the village authorities hope that more students will come to school to study even if their houses do not have power.

Body 2:

Jaya death controversy

MK Stalin, who was in Tiruvannamalai district, further questioned if J Jayalalithaa was even alive during the 2016 bye-election in the Thiruparakundram assembly constituency.

TNM Staff

DMK party president MK Stalin, while addressing a rally on Saturday, announced that his first course of action, if his party comes to power in the state, would be to investigate former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s 'mysterious' death and imprison those found responsible. Stalin was in Tiruvannamalai district to support CN Annadurai, the party's candidate for the Lok Sabha elections. He further questioned if Jayalalithaa was even alive during the 2016 bye-election in the Thiruparankundram assembly constituency. Stalin's statement comes a day after the Madras High Court set aside the election of AIADMK legislator AK Bose (who passed away last year) in the 2016 bye-election. The court pointed out that the Election Commission of India (ECI) does not have powers to permit affixing thumb impression on the nomination papers, which need to be signed by the party's general secretary, a post that was then held by Jayalalithaa. The bench further pointed out that there was no concrete proof to show that AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa affixed her thumb impression on the forms with a conscious mind. The DMK President's arguments come at a time when the Arumughasamy Commission is still probing the death of the former Chief Minister. At the rally, he also highlighted the High Court order to emphasise the 'mystery' surrounding Jayalalithaa's death. “Dr Saravanan, our candidate who lost that bye-election, goes to court and argues that it was not CM Jayalalithaa's thumb impression. He asks for an investigation on the same and the disqualification of the MLA. The case went on for a long time," he explained."On Friday, we got the verdict that it was indeed not Jayalalithaa's thumb impression and the court asked how the Election Commission could allow this. The High Court has also said that then Election Commissioner Rajesh Lakhoni was a mouthpiece of the ruling party. I ask, during the Thiruparankundram election time, was Jayalalithaa really alive? Doesn't this doubt arise?" he asked. The DMK leader admitted that Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam was the first to raise doubt regarding Jayalalithaa's death."OPS went to Amma's samadhi (resting place) and did meditation for 40 minutes. He even spoke to her spirit," the DMK chief said sarcastically."He said there is some mystery in her death and an investigation must be conducted. Who set him right after that? Modi. He left his Prime Minister's job and did 'Katta panchayat' job. He brought them (EPS and OPS) together. We had also said a proper investigation should be done… the person who died is not some 'kuppan or suppan'. She was the Chief Minister of a state," Stalin said."We have several differences with Jayalalithaa - be it ideology, between our parties and our politics. We could even be enemies but that is different. A Chief Minister has passed away. So, I have been saying continuously and repeat here in Tiruvannamalai - we will come to power and draft schemes, solve problems and deal with the basic necessities of people. That is one side. But beyond that, there is a mystery in the death of then Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. We will thoroughly investigate this and find who is responsible. They will be brought to trial and receive punishment. They will all be jailed. This will be my first action," said Stalin at the rally, adding that the true cadre of the AIADMK will be glad to hear this.

Body 2:

Controversy

Radha Ravi was speaking at an event to launch the trailer of a Nayanthara film – an event that she herself did not attend, and apparently didn’t even know about.

Priyanka Thirumurthy

Everyday misogynist and popular potty mouth Radha Ravi was given an opportunity to speak on a stage once again for some strange reason, and of course, the actor grabbed the chance to slut shame an actor – this time, Lady Superstar Nayanthara. Radha Ravi was speaking at the launch of the trailer of Nayanthara’s film Kolaiyuthir Kaalam. “Nayanthara acts as a ghost, and then she goes on to act as Sita as well. She acts as Sita! Earlier, to play the role of a goddess, they would look for [someone like] KR Vijaya. Now, anyone can be cast to play a goddess. They can cast someone who you want to pray to when you look at them, they can also cast someone you want to call towards you when you see them!” he said, making a sexually charged comment to slut shame the top actor. Nayanthara was neither present at the event, nor did she know such an event was being conducted, according to her partner and director Vinesh Shivn. In the same speech, Radha Ravi also cracked what he believed was a joke on the Pollachi sexual assault and extortion saga. “What is the difference between a big film and a small film? If you rape one girl at once, it is a small film. If you rape 40 people at once, like in Pollachi, it is a big film,” he said. While the comments were reportedly made on Saturday, as of Sunday at the time of writing this article, no top actor, director, producer or any other member of the Tamil film fraternity has condemned Radha Ravi’s statement. Radha Ravi’s speech was brought to light by singer Chinmayi, who was banned from the TN Dubbing Union headed by Radha Ravi after she spoke out against lyricist Vairamuthu for sexual harassment. The singer said on Twitter, “Been waiting since yesterday for *some* sort of condemnation from the male actor fraternity in Tamil Nadu since yesterday. In this video Radha Ravi, President, TN Dubbing Union openly slut shames a female actor at HER movie’s trailer launch. And not. a. word from anyone. Yet.” Ok. So the Producer’s council and the Nadigar Sangam can’t take any action in my case because they cannot ‘interfere in the functioning of other unions’. But This man is actually abusing a successful female actor on stage. Do take action, if you could? Mucccccchu thanksu. https://t.co/GXHhpZ8d85 — Chinmayi Sripaada (@Chinmayi) March 23, 2019 Been waiting since yesterday for *some* sort of a condemnation from the male actor fraternity in Tamilnadu since yesterday. In this video Radha Ravi, President, TN Dubbing Union openly slut shames a female actor at HER movie’s trailer launch. And not. a. word from anyone. Yet. — Chinmayi Sripaada (@Chinmayi) March 24, 2019 Nayanthara, one of the most successful female stars in the industry, has been headlining several films in the last few years. Her partner, director Vignesh Shivn, took to Twitter to condemn Radha Ravi’s attack on her, too, and spoke out against the silence of the Tamil film fraternity. “Clueless and helpless cos no one will support or do anything or take any action against that filthy piece of sh*t coming from a legendary family .. he keeps doing this to seek attention! Brainless! Sad to see audience laughing & clapping for his filthy comments!” Vignesh wrote. “None of us had any idea that this event was going to take place for an incomplete film .. the actual producers or directors left the film [a] few years back I guess! Inappropriate event with unnecessary people sitting and knowing not what to speak! If this is called promoting a movie, then it’s good to stay away from such events which don’t have any need but just to give opportunities like this for jobless people to vomit some senseless, useless stuff on stage! Anyways no one from Nadigar sangam or any sangam will take any action against him,” the director said. Clueless and helpless cos no one will support or do anything or take any action against that filthy piece of shit coming from a legendary family .. he keeps doing this to seek attention! Brainless ! Sad to see audience laughing& clapping for his filthy comments! None of us— Vignesh Shivan (@VigneshShivN) March 24, 2019 None of us had any idea that this event was going to take place for an incomplete film .. the actual producers or directors left the film few years back I guess! Inappropriate event wit unnecessary people sitting and knowing not what to speak ! If this is called promoting a movie — Vignesh Shivan (@VigneshShivN) March 24, 2019 Then it’s good to stay away from such events which don’t have any need but jus to give opportunities like this for jobless people to vomit some senseless , useless stuff on stage ! Anyways no one from Nadigar sangam or any sangam will take any action against him #Sad #state — Vignesh Shivan (@VigneshShivN) March 24, 2019 Unsurprisingly, this is hardly the first time Radha Ravi has made derogatory, sexist, or insensitive statements in a public forum. In March 2017, he mocked children with disabilities during a political speech. (Radha Ravi is a member of the DMK.) And when he was pulled up for it, he refused to apologise because he’s ‘not the type’. In an interview the year before, he said, “An artiste asked a woman – Radha Ravi called you to his office, didn’t he? He said he’s calling you for a movie and called you home didn’t he? There is nothing wrong with Radha Ravi calling women to his office. There’s nothing wrong if a man calls women to his office. There is something wrong if a man calls men to his office.” Read: Radha Ravi runs south dubbing union like a mafia, allege ousted members

Body 2:

Lok Sabha 2019

The incumbent MP from Dharmapuri constituency filed his nomination papers on Friday.

Megha Kaveri

Twitter/@draramadoss

PMK leader Dr Anbumani Ramadoss has declared assets worth Rs 33 lakh in his election affidavit; his wife Sowmiya Anbumani meanwhile has assets worth over Rs 32 crore. The couple’s daughters (two dependent as per the affidavit) have assets worth Rs 45 lakh and Rs 22 lakh respectively, putting the family’s net worth at Rs 33 crore. Anbumani Ramadoss filed his nomination papers on Friday with the electoral officer of Dharmapuri district. He will be contesting for reelection from the Dharmapuri parliamentary constituency, which is a PMK bastion. In his affidavit, Anbumani Ramadoss declared his profession as a doctor and Member of Parliament, and that of his wife as a businesswoman. While his salary is the sole income source for Anbumani Ramadoss, his wife has income from salary and business. Anbumani Ramadoss has no liabilities according to the affidavit, but his wife has declared liabilities worth Rs 7.2 crore. Assets As per the affidavit, Anbumani’s assets consist of cash, bank balance, and gold jewellery. Sowmiya Anbumani’s assets, meanwhile, consist of cash, bank balances, silver, gold, and diamond jewellery, shares in companies, insurance policies, and a Honda car. The assets of his daughters were mainly jewellery and bank balance. Movable assets Anbumani declared Rs 33 lakh worth movable assets while his wife declared Rs 9 crore worth movable assets. Sowmiya’s assets include Rs 2.05 crore in bank accounts, Rs 3.74 crore worth of shares in companies, 2.93 kg of gold jewellery worth Rs 81.65 lakh and 151.5 carat of diamond jewellery worth Rs 98.48 lakh. Sanghamitra and Sanjuthra, two of the three daughters of the couple have been listed as dependents and hold mainly jewellery as their assets according to the self-declaration filed by Anbumani. While Sanghamitra owns 506.7 grams of gold jewellery worth Rs 15.40 lakh and 40.23 carat of diamond jewellery worth Rs 26.14 lakh, Sanjuthra, the youngest daughter owns 551.8 grams of gold jewellery worth Rs 16.76 lakh and 4 carat of diamond jewellery worth Rs 2.6 lakh. Sowmiya Anbumani also owns a Honda Jazz car which was purchased for Rs 9.47 lakh in 2016. Immovable assets According to the self-declaration filed by Anbumani Ramadoss, he does not own any immovable assets. However, his wife Sowmiya owns Rs 23.37 crore-worth of immovable assets, in the form of agricultural land, ancestral land, non-agricultural lands, and commercial and residential buildings. While the value of agricultural land owned by Sowmiya is Rs 5.77 crore, the value of non-agricultural land stands at Rs 16.59 crore. She also owns commercial buildings in Chennai worth Rs 30 lakh and residential buildings in Chennai whose current market value is pegged at Rs 70 lakh. Thus the total assets of Anbumani Ramadoss according his affidavit is Rs 33,64,543 and of Sowmiya Anbumani is Rs 32,84,79,464. Liabilities Anbumani Ramadoss has declared that he has no liabilities in his name as on March 22, 2019 according to the affidavit. Sowmiya, meanwhile, owes Rs 20.81 lakh to the bank on account of housing loan and Rs 7.06 crore in the form of demand loan to entities other than banks. 2014 numbers Anbumani Ramadoss’s assets in 2014, as per his affidavit filed before the 2014 general elections stood at Rs 30 lakh and his wife’s assets were worth Rs 30 crore. In the 2014 affidavit, Anbumani had declared only one of his three daughters as dependent, and the other two as non-dependent. Criminal cases Anbumani Ramadoss has 12 criminal cases against him as per the self-declaration. Some of these cases are being investigated by the CBI. Cases against Anbumani have been registered for unlawful assembly, disobedience to order duly promulgated by a public servant, criminal intimidation, promoting enmity between two groups, disobedience of law and order during election campaign, defamation, cheating, forgery, and criminal conspiracy. In 2014, he had eight criminal cases against his name.

Body 2:

Lok Sabha 2019

Karti Chidambaram’s father and former union minister P Chidambaram was elected seven times to the Lok Sabha from Sivaganga.

TNM Staff

Twitter

Putting an end to the speculation surrounding the candidacy for Sivaganga constituency in Tamil Nadu, the Congress party on Sunday announced that Karti Chidambaram will be their candidate for the parliamentary constituency. He will be pitted against BJP National secretary H Raja. The announcement was made through a press release dated March 24 signed by the Congress General Secretary Mukul Wasnik. The party had come under criticism for not releasing its list of candidates for Tamil Nadu, which is going to the polls on April 18. The first list of candidates for Tamil Nadu, released after midnight on Saturday, announced eight candidates out of the nine seats allocated to the Congress for the Lok Sabha polls in the DMK alliance. Reports stated that the party senior leaders had not finalised the candidate for Sivaganga constituency, with three probables being mentioned – Karti Chidambaram, senior leader EM Sudarsan Natchiappan and Congress spokesperson Khushbu. Sudarsan Natchiappan is a former MP from Sivaganga who was elected to the Lok Sabha in 1999. He was a Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu from 2010 to 2016 and was also a Union Minister of State for Commerce and Industry in UPA 2. Karti’s involvement in various cases including the INX Media case had cast doubts over his selection as a candidate for the general elections. Khushbu joined the Congress in 2014 and is now the national spokesperson for the party. With the nomination of Karti Chidambaram as the Sivaganga candidate, the fight for the MP seat becomes important since it is the constituency from where Karti Chidambaram’s father and former union minister P Chidambaram was elected seven times to the Lok Sabha. H Raja, the BJP candidate, was elected as an MLA from Karaikkudi Assembly constituency in 2001 on a BJP ticket. Contesting from Sivaganga in the 1999 general elections, Raja had lost to Sudarsan Natchiappan. In the 2014 general elections, he contested again from the Sivaganga constituency but managed to grab only the third place, after the AIADMK and the DMK.

Body 2:

Lok Sabha 2019

AM Sheik Davood also promised Rs 25,000 per family per month assistance, and a scheme to bring water from Mettur to Tiruppur.

TNM Staff

An independent candidate from Tiruppur Lok Sabha constituency has promised a supply of 10 litres of pure, unadulterated brandy per month for each family if he gets elected to the Parliament. While political parties across the spectrum are busy announcing their candidates and releasing election manifestos, independent candidates are trying hard to be tough contenders. In that list, an independent candidate from Tiruppur parliamentary constituency has listed provision of free alcohol for the people as one of his poll promises. AM Sheik Davood hails from Anthiyur in Erode district. He filed his nomination papers on Saturday to contest in the upcoming polls from the Tiruppur constituency as an independent candidate. Speaking to reporters after filing the nomination papers in the Collectorate, Sheik Davood listed his poll promises. “I will supply 10 litres of pure brandy, which people use as medicine, imported from Pondicherry to each person in a family every month,” he said. His other promises included provision of Rs 25,000 to every family each month, digging a canal from Mettur to Tiruppur via Anthiyur and Gobichettipalayam to bring drinking water to the district, government jobs to one person in each family, wedding assistance of 10 sovereigns of gold and Rs 10 lakh from his MP funds, and urging the government to not implement total prohibition in the state. An independent candidate from #Tiruppur LS constituency promising 10 ltrs (among other things ofc) of pure brandy per family,per month for medicinal usage of he is elected. #Elections2019 pic.twitter.com/9adbikKZCa — Megha Kaveri (@meghakaveri) March 24, 2019 While the AIADMK has fielded MSM Anandan, a former minister, in Tiruppur, the DMK has allotted the seat for its ally, the Communist Party of India. K Subbarayan will contest from the CPI in Tiruppur.

Body 2:

Controversy

Vignesh Shivn, Nayanthara's partner, had tweeted to DMK President MK Stalin calling for stringent action.

TNM Staff

A day after his vile and sexist remarks at the trailer launch of Nayanthara's latest film kicked up a storm, the DMK has suspended actor and partyman Radha Ravi. A statement issued by DMK General Secretary K Anbazhagan on Sunday said that the actor was being suspended from primary membership of the party. "Actor Radha Ravi is being temporarily suspended from primary membership of the party and all party posts for breaching party discipline and acting in a manner that brings disrepute to the party," said the statement. Speaking at the trailer launch of Nayanthara's latest film Kolaiyuthir Kaalam on Saturday, Radha Ravi slut-shamed the Lady Superstar, making sexually charged remarks. "Nayanthara acts as a ghost, and then she goes on to act as Sita as well. She acts as Sita! Earlier, to play the role of a goddess, they would look for [someone like] KR Vijaya. Now, anyone can be cast to play a goddess. They can cast someone who you want to pray to when you look at them, they can also cast someone you want to call towards you when you see them!” he had said. (This is a translation). Not stopping at slut-shaming an actor at the launch of her own film's trailer, the serial misogynist went on to make vile remarks about the Pollachi sexual assault and extortion racket that had shocked Tamil Nadu in recent weeks. "What is the difference between a big film and a small film? If you rape one girl at once, it is a small film. If you rape 40 people at once, like in Pollachi, it is a big film,” he had said. 66-year-old Radha Ravi is the son of yesteryear actor and politician MR Radha. Hailing from an influential family, the actor has been part of both major Dravidian parties in the state. He had served as chief of the Nadigar Sangam too Despite allegations of systemic mismanagement, Radha Ravi also continues to head the Dubbing Union, the central body for voice and dubbing artistes in the Tamil film industry. Notably, he was named for sexual misconduct in the MeToo movement. The speech went viral on Sunday, prompting a strong reaction from Nayanthara's partner and director Vignesh Shivn. In a tweet tagging DMK President MK Stalin and Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, he wrote, "both respected leaders have voiced vociferously against Pollachi Sexual Harassment case. Please , Why don’t you take stringent action against male chauvinist, crass sexist & bully Mr.Radha Ravi? Kindly acknowledge and take action"(sic). @mkstalin sir & @KanimozhiDMK Madame, both respected leaders have voiced vociferously against Pollachi Sexual Harassment case. Please , Why don’t you take stringent action against male chauvinist, crass sexist & bully Mr.Radha Ravi? Kindly acknowledge and take action— Vignesh Shivan (@VigneshShivN) March 24, 2019

Body 2:

Lok Sabha 2019

Releasing the party's manifesto in Coimbatore on Sunday, the actor said that all candidates were his 'party faces’.

TNM Staff

Over a year after actor Kamal Haasan officially entered politics with his Makkal Needhi Maiam, he has announced his decision not to contest in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections or the bye-polls due in the state. The actor-politician was releasing the party's manifesto in Coimbatore on Sunday when he said that all candidates of the party were 'his faces.' Soon after the actor-politician released the first list of candidates for the Lok Sabha polls, speculation had been rife on whether he himself would be taking the electoral plunge. He had promised that the second list would spark even greater interest than the first. However, the actor, who has spoken about rural development and routing corruption over the past year, said, "This palanquin is not for me to ride in, but for my party to ride in. My destination and endeavour is towards Tamil Nadu. That doesn't mean that I'm not interested in this. I'm very interested in it. I want our party's foundation to be very strong and all-encompassing. That's why we want to be present in the parliament to voice Tamil sentiments, emotions and expectations. This voice will echo nearly after 50 years. We've not had a proper, resounding representation." The party’s manifesto, which was released on Sunday along with the second list of candidates and 18 bye-poll candidates, makes tall promises. The newbie politician promised to 'provide tap water in every household within five years and create zero need to buy drinking water.' The Makkal Needhi Maiam founder also promised to 'wipe out poverty in Tamil Nadu from 60 lakh BPL families and ensure a slum-free, hut-less Tamil Nadu within five years.' The party which had recently witnessed the exit of entrepreneur CK Kumaravel of the Naturals group has fielded vanilla farmer C Mahendran from Coimbatore. Lyricist and former ‘Bigg Boss Tamil’ contestant Snehan will be the party's candidate from the Sivaganga constituency, up against H Raja (BJP) of the AIADMK-led alliance and Karti Chidambaram (INC) of the DMK-led alliance. Actor S Ganesh would be contesting on the party's battery torch symbol from Kallakurichi. Other parliamentary candidates of the party are: N Thangaraj for Kancheepuram (SC), V Shaji for Arani, R Thangavel for Namakkal, Saravanakumar for Erode, J Vijayabaskar for Ramanathapuram, Hariharan for Karur, Sampath Ramdas for Thanjavur, M Azhagar for Madurai, Rangarajan for South Chennai, V Annamalai for Cuddalore, V Muniyasamy for Virudhunagar, K Muneeswaran for Tenkasi(SC), VS Chandrakumar for Tiruppur, R Mookambikai for Pollachi, and Arul Prakasam for Perambalur.

Body 2:

Controversy

Nayanthara further asked the Nadigar Sangam (Actors’ Association) when they plan to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee as per the Vishakha Guidelines.

Priyanka Thirumurthy

A day after social media outrage over routine offender Radha Ravi’s distasteful remarks on ‘Lady Superstar’ Nayanthara, the actor herself has issued a statement slamming him. In the two page statement Nayanthara has termed Radha Ravi a misogynist and condemned him for his remarks. Radha Ravi, who was speaking at the launch of the trailer of Nayanthara’s film Kolaiyuthir Kaalam last week, slut shamed her and questioned how she could essay the role of goddess Sita in an earlier film in which she had starred. In her statement, Nayanthara also questions the judgement of the audience at the event who applauded Radha Ravi's sexist remarks. She then takes the conversation beyond this incident to ask the Nadigar Sangam (Actors’ Association) when they plan to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee as per the Vishakha Guidelines. At the event, Radha Ravi had said, “Nayanthara acts as a ghost, and then she goes on to act as Sita as well. She acts as Sita! Earlier, to play the role of a goddess, they would look for [someone like] KR Vijaya. Now, anyone can be cast to play a goddess. They can cast someone who you want to pray to when you look at them, they can also cast someone you want to call towards you when you see them!” Nayanthara’s full statement reads as follows: “I rarely issue public statements, as I have always allowed my professional work to speak for itself. However desperate times mandate desperate measures. So today, I am compelled to issue a detailed statement to clarify my own position and also to champion the cause of women who bear the brunt of male insensitivities and sexism. First and foremost it my bounden duty to place on record my sincerest thanks and deepest appreciation to the president of DMK Thiru MK Stalin for swiftly taking action against misogynistic speeches of Thiru Radha Ravi. My sincere thanks to you sir. At the outset, I would like to remind Radha Ravi and the likes of misogynists like him that they were also given birth by a woman. By demeaning the status of women and passing sexist remarks these retarded men get a feeling of machismo. I feel terribly sorry for the way they treat women in an opinionated way and my empathy remains with all the women who live in the families of these 'macho' men. As an actor of considerable seniority and work experience, Mr.Radha Ravi should have led the younger generation by example, instead, he has chosen to take up the role of a misogynist 'role-model'. These are troubled times for women, as women are establishing themselves predominantly in every field of public life and asserting their due place in the era of meritocracy. When actors like Mr. Radha Ravi fall out of business and become irrelevant they tend to rely on cheap popularity tactics in order to grab some limelight. What remains ghastly shocking about his male chauvinistic speeches are that he never ceases to get applause and laughs from some members of the audience. As long as the audience encourage sexist remarks, speakers like Mr Radha Ravi will continue to thrive on misogyny and cracking of denigrating jokes against women. I strongly urge well intentioned citizens and my beloved fans to deeply discourage the behaviour of the likes of Mr Radha Ravi. Not withstanding the aforesaid advisory, through this statement I would like to strongly register my condemnation and protest against the derogatory speeches made by Mr Radha Ravi against women and children in general and me in specific. God has been amply kind in giving me wonderful professional opportunities and the affectionate movie-goers of Tamil Nadu have amply rewarded me for my good performances. Irrespective of all negative remarks and aspersions cast upon me, I shall continue to take up the multifaceted role of Sita, ghost, Goddess, friend, wife, lover, so on and so forth with the solemn intention of providing maximum entertainment to my fans. Lastly, my humble question to the South Indian Artistes’ Association (Nadigar Sangam):- Will you set up the Internal Complaints Committee as per the hon’ble Supreme Court’s dictum and commence an internal inquiry as per Vishakha Guidelines??? Once again, thanking all the good hearts that have stood by me yet again supporting me through this little phase of negativity.” Nayanthara was neither present at this event, nor did she know such an event was being conducted, according to her partner and director Vignesh Shivn. In the same speech, Radha Ravi also cracked what he believed was a joke on the Pollachi sexual assault and extortion saga. “What is the difference between a big film and a small film? If you rape one girl at once, it is a small film. If you rape 40 people at once, like in Pollachi, it is a big film,” he had said.

Body 2:

Court

The court reiterated the order and asked the TN govt to take preventive measures.

TNM Staff

The ban on political messaging in Tamil Nadu was reinforced by the Supreme Court on Monday, which directed the Tamil Nadu government to take preventive measures. The court reportedly said that public places such as hills, hillocks, and medians of highways are not to be defaced with political messages. Earlier this month, the court heard a special leave petition filed by lawyer and activist Elephant G Rajendran, who had sought a judicial order to disqualify electoral candidates who do not remove their political advertisements from natural structures such as mountains and hills. According to CNN News18, the plea had sought that political graffiti and advertisements on natural resources be prevented. Last month, a bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi and comprising of Justices SA Nazeer and Sanjiv Khanna said, “We will not allow the defacement of public places and properties with advertisements and slogans of political parties.” At the time, they asked the Tamil Nadu government about the steps it was taking to prevent such defacement. On January 11, the Supreme Court had issued a notice to the Tamil Nadu government and the Centre directing them to restrict parties from erecting digital banners. In December last year, the Madras High Court had ordered that no registered or unregistered political party in the state should erect flex boards in a manner that causes inconvenience to pedestrians and motorists. This came after repeated directions to the government, local bodies, and police officials to regulate the display of flex boards on roadsides in accordance with the law. A 2017 ruling of the Madras High Court banned hoardings and flex boards which featured living persons. However, the ruling AIADMK, as well as several other parties in the state have repeatedly violated rules to erect large cut-outs of political leaders, blocking footpaths in the state.

Body 2:

AMMK’s final Lok Sabha List: Thanga Tamilselvan to battle OPS’ son in Theni

Madhu Kishwar misquotes 2016 DMK manifesto, party says she is hate mongering

Choreographer Kala Master joins AMMK ahead of Lok Sabha Elections

How two Salem cops intervened to ensure justice in a 2014 child rape and murder case

Madras HC declares election of AIADMK's AK Bose from Tirupparankundram invalid

CBI raids at AIADMK MP Anwar Raajha’s residence for alleged job scam

DMK leader Jagathrakshakan’s links to Sri Lanka’s ‘biggest’ FDI deal, explained

Congress’ list for Tamil Nadu out; Sivaganga remains unallotted

DMDK’s LK Sudhish reports over 330 pc rise in moveable assets

31-year-old Trichy lawyer arrested for allegedly sexually assaulting minor

Coimbatore govt school gets power supply after 17 years, thanks to elections

‘Will investigate Jaya’s death when DMK comes to power’: MK Stalin at TN rally

Radha Ravi slut shames Nayanthara on stage, Tamil industry ignores as usual

PMK's Anbumani Ramadoss's family holds assets worth Rs 33 crore

Karti Chidambaram gets Cong ticket for Sivaganga, to face off with BJP's H Raja

‘10 litres of brandy every month’: Tiruppur independent candidate’s election promise

DMK suspends partyman Radha Ravi after he slut shames Nayanthara

Kamal Haasan won't contest Lok Sabha polls, his party makes tall promises in manifesto

Will act as Sita, ghost, friend or lover: Nayanthara shuts down Radha Ravi in style

No political graffiti in public spaces in TN: SC tells govt