Kalaignar greets Sathish for doing TN proud by winning gold in CW Games

DMK President Kalaignar greeted Sathish Kumar of Vellore for doing Tamil Nadu proud by winning a gold medal in Cammonwealth Games currently held in Glasgow in Scotland.
In his message of greetings, Kalaignar said the 20th Commonwealth Games is being held in Glasgow, Scotland since July 23. In these Games, 22-year old Sathish Kumar of Vellore won gold medal in 77kg category of men’s weight lifting competition making Tamils lift their heads in pride. He lifted a total of 317 kg including 149 kg in snatch- a new Games record, beating the previous best of 148 kg lifted by Yuko Peter of Nauru while winning gold in Delhi. Sathish also lifted 179 kg in clean and jerk, Kalaignar noted.
Affectionately greeting Sathish for adding glory to Tamil Nadu, Kalaignar also wished him to get gold medals in the Asian Games to be held in October next and in the next Olympics. He also greeted his parents.
Vellore carries gold:  You take a left near the Gangaiamman Temple on the service lane of the Chennai-Bangalore National Highway in Sathuvachari, Vellore, go straight along a narrow lane, meet a dead end, turn right, again turn right, then turn left into a narrow lane, go straight and turn left again into a narrow street called New Street.
There you find in the middle of the street a little old house of 22-year-old S. Sathish Kumar, who did India proud by winning the gold medal in the 77-kg category in the Commonwealth Games under way in Glasgow on July 27.
Sathish Kumar’s parents N. Sivalingam and Deivanai were busy responding to enquiries from friends and relatives about the achievement of their son. Taking some time off in the midst of their bonhomie, Sivalingam, himself a weightlifter of yesteryears and his wife Deivanai narrated the achievements of their son.
Right from the age of 12, he had participated in the First National Inter-School Weightlifting Tournament conducted at Ferozepur in Punjab in 2006-07. This was followed by his first gold in the Second National Inter-School Tournament Group-II held in Thiruvananthapuram in December 2007.
Thereafter, it was a gold-winning spree for this youngster who currently represents the Indian Railways, being a clerk in the Southern Railway in Royapuram, Chennai where he had joined in 2011. He won the gold medal in the National Sub Junior Tournament as well as the National Junior Tournament held in Chattisgarh in 2009.
This twin gold catapulted him to participation in international tournaments, with his participation in the Junior World Weightlifting Championship held in Bulgaria in June 2010. He won the gold in the South Asian Championship in Nepal in 2012. He subsequently participated in the Asian Championship in Pyongyang, Korea and the Asian Championship in Astana in Kazakhstan in 2013.
His national achievements include the winning of two gold medals and one silver medal in the 65th Men Senior National Weightlifting Championship conducted by the Uttar Pradesh Weightlifting Association in Modinagar in 2012-13, and the 66th Men Senior National Weightlifting Championship conducted by Maharashtra State Weightlifting Association in Nagpur in March/April 2014.
Sathish Kumar, a student of Government Higher Secondary School, Sathuvachari has already won a gold medal in the 77-kg category in the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships held in Apia, Samoa in June 2012.
A proud Sivalingam, an ex-serviceman, currently employed in the VIT University said that his son’s latest achievement of a gold medal in the Glasgow Commonwealth Games was also a record break for the Games in that he lifted 149 kg, beating the earlier record of 148 kg.
Sathish Kumar received his initial coaching in the Atlas Gymnasium in Sathuvachari, after which he was trained at the Weightlifting School of the Sports Development Authority of Tamil Nadu (SDAT) in Sathuvachari, which has produced many weightlifters of national fame. An interesting fact not known to many is that many youngsters residing in Sathuvachari have undergone training in the SDAT School in Sathuvachari and have achieved laurels for Vellore and Tamil Nadu.
 Sivalingam said that Sathish Kumar has also been selected for the Asian Games to be held in South Korea in October this year. “I appeal to the Central and State governments to help him in participating in the next Olympics”, he said.

DMK wants Katju removed from PCI post

The DMK on July 30 wrote to the Vice-President Hamid Ansari seeking the removal of Markandey Katju as Chairman of the Press Council of India (PCI).
In the letter, also sent to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, the Lok Sabha Speaker, Union Ministers and secretaries Law and Justice and Information and Broadcasting departments, DMK legal wing secretary K.S. Bharathi said the party was writing the letter to bring to notice the various omissions and commissions of Katju, which amounted to misconduct and proven misbehaviour.
The letter said:
1. The DMK Party is submitting this representation to bring to the notice the various omissions and commissions of Mr. Merkandeye Katju. Chairman Press Council of India which amounts to misconduct and proven misbehavior and therefore is seeking for removal from the sald post. Mr. Katju has belittled the post due to his continuous outbursts and temperamental behavior which is not expected from a person holding the public office
2. As per the Press Council of India Act, 1978, the Chairman of the Council is a whole-time officer and draws salary and allowances from Central Government As per Section 24 of the aforesaid Act, he is a public servant within the meaning of Section 21 of IPC Right from the date of assuming office of Chairman, PCI, he has been Issuing controversial statements and criticizing Political leaders, Parliamentarians, Legislators and now the Judiciary which in our respectful opinion a whole time officer holding a public office is not expected to do.
3. Being a whole time officer and drawing salary from the Central Government, occupying Government bungalow and availing perks at the cost of public exchequer, he is expected to maintain utmost dignity, decency and decorum of the post. Also being a statutory authority he cannot act as a mouth piece of any political party nor can he air his controversial views which are political in nature while he is holding a public office. Holding the post of Chairman of the Press Council and exercising quasi judicial functions, he is expected to be polite, well behaved, impartial, independent and considerate. On the contrary, he is interested in publicity mania and often throws himself in to midst of controversies and criticisms.
4. Some of his controversial statements which landed himself in criticisms are as follows:-
(a) He had made comments on 22nd December 2012 against the then Chief Minister of Gujarat and presently Hon”ble Prime Minister of India Mr. Narendra Modi describing him as “Phoney” and claimed that “there is no way in which the blot on Modi’s name due to the 2002 Gujarat Communal riots can be wiped out”. (Annexure I). When Mr. Modi was never named in the charge sheet, there was no reason to make such comment that too being a Retired Judge of Supreme Court, in a irresponsible manner.
(b) On 17.02.2013, Mr. Arun Jaitley, BJP leader and the present Union Minister of Finance and Defence demanded that Katju has to resign from the post for his outburst on Mr. Narendra Modi. Mr. Arun Jaitley said “should not a former judge who currently occupies a quasi judicial office as Chairman of Press Council of India, either quit before actively participating in politics or be sacked? Retired Judges must remember that the rental for occupying a Lutyen’s Bunglow post retirement has to be political neutrality, not political participation”. (Annexure II)
(c) Mr. Arun Jaitley in an English daily news paper wrote about Katju that “Though initially known for his scholarship, Justice Katju was never a conventional Judge. His utterances, both during his tenure as a judge and thereafter, are clearly outlandish and dignified comment is alien to him” (Annexure III)
(d) Mr. Ravi Shankar Prasad, then BJP leader and present Union Minister for Law and Justice and Tele communications criticized Mr. Katju that the article written by Mr. Katju is not in good taste. (Annexure IV)
(e) Mr. Yashwant Sinha and Mr. Rajiv Pratap Rudy, BJP Leaders called Mr. Katju of being partial towards a particular political party and demanded his resignation. Mr. Rajiv Pratap Rudy said “Katju is floating around the country like a vagabond and is giving unsolicited comments”. (Annexure V)
(f) On 20.02.2013 Mr Katju criticized Bihar Chief Minster Mr. Nitish Kumar and praised Mr. Lalu Prasad out of context and Mr. Nitish Kumar retorted as “Mr. Katju, you’ve dialed wrong number” “Mr Katju has crossed the lines and attacked me without substance”. (Annexure VI & VII)
(g) On 26.07.2013, Mr. Markandeya Katju called Mr. Narendra Modi the then Gujarat Chief Minister and the Present  Prime Minister of India as ‘Anti national’ (Indian Express, dated 26.07.2013 Annexure VIII)
(h) In December 2012, Mr. Markandeya Katju remarked that “90% of Indians are fools”. The entire country was upset by his remarks. Then Mr. Katju came out with the following statement “From time to time people have been bringing to my notice that the language I use may have been harsh. So if it has hurt some feelings, I thought it fit to apologize” (Annexure IX). This would show that Mr. Katju himself has admitted that his language is harsh.
(i) Once Mr. Marka10ndeya Katju has commented about Ms. Mamata Bannerjee as follows: “Integrity is becoming rare in public life in the country, but Mamata’s integrity is of the highest order” (Annexure X). Contrary to his praises, he subsequently criticized her as “Mamata Bannerjee seems to have become intolerant and whimsical, and she is autocratic” (Annexure XI). This shows his unstable mind and level of contradictions.
(j) On 05.04.2013, Mr. Markandeya Katju remarked while hearing a case against the present  Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Ms. J. Jayalalithaa as follows: “Let the Chief Minister say she is unable to run the Government in accordance to the Constitution and submit resignation to the Government” (Annexure XII). But now Mr. Markandeya Katju interestingly has recently praised Ms. J. Jayalaithaa for obvious reasons. His praises are politically motivated. His recent comments against DMK and its leader exposes his political affinity towards ruling party in Tamilnadu for obvious reasons Annexure XIII).
(k) In the recent outburst which created a great unrest in the judiciary, Mr. Markandeya Katju out of context has commented about “compulsions on extension of term” of a Judge of Madras High Court while he was the Chief Justice of Madras High Court. Mr. Katju ought to have revealed these “compulsions” when he was the Chief Justice of Madras High Court or when he became the Judge of Supreme Court. However, after lapse of 10 years, he makes a scene for the sake of publicity and to draw attention of the media and to help the ruling AIADMK party to gain political mileage. Mr. Katju has also unnecessarily dragged the three Former Chief Justices of India and the Collegium members into controversy by leveling allegations against them.
(l) Why this sudden outburst comes after a period of 10 years of demitting the office of Chief Justice of Madras High Court and also Judge of Supreme Court, is a million dollar question. No one prevented him from expressing his dissent in writing or from swearing in the Judge against whom he had no good opinion or to allot works to him. When Mr. Katju has participated in the process of extension of the term of the judge in question, it is not open to him to question the legality or morality of the decision at a later date. This is the basic tenet of law which we need not teach to a retired Judge of Supreme Court.
(m) Even though there is no truth in such un-timely revelations about our DMK party, disturbing factor is that when he took the Oath of office of the Chief Justice of Madras High Court, Judge of Supreme Court, Mr Markandeya Katju is bound by the secrecy which has come to his knowledge in his official capacity and he is not expected to disclose as to what has transpired between the Collegium members and the Chief Justice of India. Hence, as a convention even though a person demits the office he is expected to hold on his secrecy unto his grave and maintain the high dignity of office and positions he held. Famous Jurist and Former Attorney General Mr. Soli Sorabjee has said that by questioning the former Chief Justices, Mr. Katju is lowering the institution (India Today dated 23.07.2014 – Annexure XIV). Thus Mr. Markandya Katju has now brought judiciary in to poor light for his personal ends. Therefore, time has come where the high constitutional functionaries and person holding public offices cannot be allowed to reveal any secrets which have come to their knowledge while discharging their duties, even after they demit office. Otherwise person like Mr. Katju after retirement may say some distorted version of the official secrets which has come to their attention while exercising public function. Any premium to such statement will create chaos and confusion in the society besides affect the integrity of the institutions. Therefore, the  Law Minister has to bestow his kind attention to amend necessary laws and see to that the secrecy is maintained up to the grave. Otherwise, persons like Mr. Katju might twist and distort official secrets which have come to their knowledge while discharge of their duties, for their personal and political gains and may influence the mind of public.
(n) At this juncture we are pained to state that Mr Markandeya Katju on 23.7.2014 asked our DMK President and former Chief Minister of Tamilnadu Dr Kalaignar Karunanidhi to disclose his personal wealth and family assets accumulated after he joined politics.(Annexure XV). This was not the duty of a Chairman of Press Council. However our DMK Chief has given a befitting reply (Annexure XVI) stating that his personal wealth details are like an open book and that he has disclosed every time his assets details whenever he stood in the MLA elections and that his only asset is the small house at Gopalapuram where he is residing now. Our leader has also replied that this house will go to the public trust after his and wife’s demise and that he has executed necessary documents in this regard. Our leader in turn has asked the property details of Mr Katju and the details of  Chief Minister of Tamilnadu who was praised by Mr Katju and has raised doubts that only at the instigation of certain vested interest to protect the  Chief Minister of Tamilnadu from disproportionate case tried at Bengaluru such attempt is made by Mr Katju.
(o) Even otherwise, the conduct of Mr. Markandeya Katju on making such revelations which has come to his notice while he was the Chief Justice of Madras High Court amounts to breach of trust and is in violation of conventions which an outgoing Chief Justice and a Judge of Supreme Court is expected to maintain particularly when he is still enjoying the fruits of the retirement benefits of a Supreme Court Judge.
7. Recently Mr. Markandeya Katju article was published in “The Times of India” dated 28.07.2014 relating to his opinion on contempt of courts and the said article among other things reads as follows “If someone calls a Judge a fool inside the court room and goes away, in my opinion, it is not contempt, for he has not stopped the functioning of the court”.
8. Mr. Markandeya Katju as Press Council Chairman and being a quasi judicial authority cannot give such opinion and make it public. Such public utterances of Mr. Katju will not only bring disrepute to him but also undermine the judicial process and judicial system.
9. Such opinion of Mr. Katju is per-se criminal contempt. He is tempting the lawyers and innocent litigants to indulge in scandalizing and lowering the authority of court and cause embarrassment to the judicial officers. His recent utterances are not made in good faith and taste and are aimed now to tarnish the image of the judiciary and its independency and interfere with the judicial process. As a Chairman of PCI his actions and conduct has certainly embarrassed another institution viz. the Judiciary.
10. Article 50 of the Constitution of India contemplates broad separation of powers and that each organs of the State must not encroach into other. Thus his utterances are violating Article 50 of the Constitution of India.
11. It is submitted that the  Supreme Court in the judgment reported in 1994 Suppl. 3 SCC 509 in the case of K.A. Mohammed Ali Vs. C.N. Prasannan has observed that “an advocate who has raised pitch of voice unusually high to the annoyance of the Learned Magistrate and besides has used derogatory language against him amounted to contempt of court”.
12. The  Supreme Court in the judgment reported in 2011 (7) SCC 776 in the case of Vishan Singh Raghu Banerji Vs State of Uttar Pradesh has observed that “humiliating the judicial officers requires to be curbed with heavy hands. Otherwise the judicial system itself would collapse. The ultimate aim to scandalize the court which would shake the confidence of the litigating public in the system would cause a very serious damage to the institution of judiciary. An advocate profession should be diligent and his conduct should also be diligent and conform to the requirements of the law by which an advocate plays a vital role in the preservation of society and the justice system. Any violation of the principles of professional ethics by an advocate is unfortunate and unacceptable”.
13. It is submitted that the holder of public office on whom the power vests is accountable to the people. They are to be exercised for public good and for promoting public interest. All the powers have to sub serve general welfare and common good and should be exercised for the sake of society. The statutory authority should find his activities within the four corners of the statute. A statutory authority cannot transgress his jurisdiction and such actions and  disorderly behavior amounts to a misconduct. Mr. Katju’s misconduct is detrimental to public morale and public interest. If such utterances of Mr. Katju as extracted above are taken as a gospel truth by any litigant or lawyer and if he is dissatisfied with the exercise of judicial functions by any judge of High Court or Supreme Court, he/she may indulge by calling the Judges by words as suggested by Mr. Katju, ultimately they would land in contempt.
14. All along Mr. Katju was targeting the Parliamentarians and legislators. Now, his ammunitions are being fired against judiciary. We suspect that only to silence the judiciary and to dilute the powers of contempt of court for obvious reasons, Mr. Katju is making such statements.
15. Therefore to safeguard the institution from the harm that may be caused by the continuance of Mr. Katju as Chairman of Press Council of India and since the Central Government is duty bound to protect the image and credibility of the Council so that the people’s faith in the Council and judiciary is not shaken, Mr. Katju has to be removed from the post of the Chairman of the Press Council of India. The various commissions and omissions enlightened above puts the post of the Chairman in a poor light and his utterances enlisted above amounts to proven misbehavior besides contemptuous. Such utterances of Mr. Katju not only causes damage to the reputation of the judiciary, legislature but has also damaged the independent body like the Press Council of India.
16. The Chairman of the Press Council of India is expected to be a man of high integrity, honesty and required to have a moral vigour, ethical fairness and impervious to menial influences. He is required to maintain a high standard of propriety in his conduct. Any conduct which tends to undermine public confidence in the integrity and his functioning would be deleterious to the efficacy of his post. Therefore, the basic requirement is that his official and personal conduct be free from impropriety. The same must be in tune with the higher standard in propriety and probity. The standard of conduct is higher than expected from a layman. In fact even in his private life he must adhere to high standards of probity and propriety higher than those deemed acceptable for others. The intemperate behaviour of Mr. Katju has repelling effect not only on the reputation of the Press Council but also on the judiciary as he is the retired Judge of the Apex Court.
17. When the edifice of judiciary is built on public confidence and respect, the damage done by Justice (Retired) Katju by his periodical utterances and the controversial statements would rip apart the faith in the system of judiciary. Bad conduct and bad behaviour of Mr. Katju has eroded the public confidence in the efficacy of the Press Council of India apart from it has lowered the dignity and credibility of the judiciary, The guaranty of tenure and statutory protection would not accord sanctuary for misbehavior or to indulge in mudslinging activities time and again. The independency of judiciary and stream of public justice should not be put into embarrassment by way of these irresponsible revelations and statements as referred above.
18. We humbly submit that we had also addressed to  Chief Justice of India to lay down guide lines to the High Courts and Supreme court to abide by certain standards of secrecy in exercise of the administrative functions the matters which come to the knowledge while discharging of the duties in the capacity of Judge of High court Chief Justice of High court! Judge of Supreme Court! Chief Justice of Supreme court and that the same will be maintained even after they demit from the respective posts.
19. Under these circumstances, we request that the authorities may kindly initiate action and remove Mr. Markendeya Katju from the post of the Chairman of the Press Council of India and oblige.”

“Opposition gagged in Assembly, no democracy in State”

DMK President Kalaignar M Karunanidhi on July 31 said that democracy has been throttled in the Tamil Nadu Assembly with all his party MLAs barred from entering the House for the rest of the session, but also called upon youth to come forward to defend democracy in Tamil Nadu. He recalled a time when he had a cordial relationship with Jayalalitha when they worked together in the film industry.
Addressing a well-attended public meeting in Chennai arranged by South Chennai district DMK, Kalaignar said that it had been acknowledged even by other movements that the DMK was unparalleled in social, literary and Tamil development fields.
Referring to the earlier speeches of Stalin and Duraimurugan on the conduct of the State Assembly by the ADMK regime, Kalaignar said though he was elected with thumping majority from Tiruvarur Constituency in the last Assembly elections, he was unable to attend the session of the Assembly as the present rulers did not provide him enough space to move and occupy the seat allotted on his wheel chair. Still he was attending to the needs and issues of the people of the constituency through letters or representation through comrades to the officials.
He said an elected Assembly was duty bound to safeguard democracy and democratic norms and traditions. But the earlier speakers narrated with agony and concern the difficulties for them to raise the issues of the people in the House.
An emotional DMK chief said he had been a member of the State assembly since 1957 when Kamarajar and M.Bhakthavatchalam were the Chief Ministers. It was the time when the Opposition parties were allowed to raise issues and speak freely in the House.
Kamarajar treated opposition members with respect and once when a textbook was found to have certain derogatory references to certain sections of society, Kalaignar said he raised the matter in the Assembly and immediately Kamarajar and the Minister of the department P.Kakkan attended to the issue and had the textbook revised.
He said that recently when he went to Delhi he visited the Rajya Sabha where he could see a few elderly members like him were seated in exclusive seats. But the rulers in the State had no such inclination to provide him the facility in the House. Referring to his acquaintance with Jayalalitha when they worked in film industry, Kalaignar said, “We worked together in the film industry and shared a good professional relationship but later (as CM) she put me in jail”.
But he was not bothered about his personal difficulties by only concerned with the deterioration and destruction of democracy cherished in the Tamil Nadu Assembly since its inception.
“Since the rest of the opposition members of parties such as DMDK, CPM, CPI, Congress, PMK, Manitha Neya Makkal Katchi and Puthiya Thamizhagam  have appealed to the Speaker to revoke suspensions of DMK MLAs, we should not fail to cooperate with them when such situations develop,” he said.
He said the youth should come forward to take steps for protecting democracy.
‘Ready for stir’: DMK floor leader in the Assembly and party Treasurer Thalapathi M K Stalin recalled an incident in the Assembly in 1957 during the Congress rule when the Opposition leader Arignar Anna, while speaking an ordinance, severely attacked the ruling party and said that there was an agitation in Patna in which the portrait of Mahatma Gandhi was burnt, the effigy of Jawaharlal Nehru was set ablaze but you (the rulers) had set on fire this Constitution more than ten times, but there was no shouting and chaos from the Treasury benches as now. Anna could fully register his views which were still available in the Assembly library, Stalin said.
In another incident, speaking on the budget for 1958-59 Anna asked whether the government would come forward to nationalise film industry and offered to give any number of stories and dialogues. The ruling Congress party did not raise any protest but on the contrary Kamarajar rose up and said that the government was ready to accept stories given by Anna but he should also act in the films. Anna said if Kamarajar orders he was prepared to act also.
Wondering whether such heated debates and lively exchanges were possible in the present House, Stalin said that even while the question hour was on when it informed over the mike that the Chief Minister had started from her residence, the Speaker would expedite the qvuestion hour and she entered it would be stopped. The Speaker sitting on the edge of his seat would rise up and then the Chief Minister would read out statements under rule 110 for which there were no debates or question but only singing paeans for her.
He said it was sad that the Tamil Nadu Assembly has become a ‘Puguzh Padum Manram’ (House to sing praises) of Chief Minister Jayalalitha to the extent that real issues affecting the State were not addressed. They could criticise Kalaignar but now vulgarise. If the DMK members sought to refute permission was refused.  He said if the State government failed to act on the law and order front, DMK would embark on a campaign and agitation, with the permission of Kalaiganr, demanding removal of the government.
Party’s deputy floor leader Duraimurugan spoke of how the previous DMK governments had upheld democratic traditions in the Assembly.
“Jayalalitha had not signed on the official book for 60 working days of the Assembly once and could have been barred from the Assembly but her party leader O Panneerselvam had submitted a letter to the then Speaker expressing Jayalalitha’s inability to attend the session and Kalaignar had the grace to relax the norms,” he recalled

“Release white paper on works executed on announcements”

Observing that Chief Minister Jayalalitha has so far announced projects worth Rs. 50,000 crore since she came to power in 2011, DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M.K.Stalin challenged her to release a white paper on the number of projects/schemes implemented among those announced by her in the Assembly.
Addressing a massive public meeting on ‘The Perils of Tamil Nadu Assembly’ in Tiruchi on Aug 2, Stalin said the members of opposition parties such as DMK, DMDK, Puthiya Thamizhagam and Manitha Neya Makkal Katchi were refused permission to speak on issues of their constituencies, basic problems and demands of people in the Assembly.
The ruling ADMK, with a scheme evicted the DMK members as they could not face the questions and charges raised by them. “Not only in the Assembly, there is no democracy even to the people of Tamil Nadu”, he said.  When the session started on July 10, permission was refused for him to raise the issue of Maulivakkam building collapse with the Housing Minister Vaithialingam stating that the issue could not be debated as a judicial probe has been ordered. Hence the DMK members staged a walk out.
Walkout by parties from the House was a permitted democratic norm. The DMK members had to resort to walkouts as the Speaker refused permission to speak and ADMK members and ministers including the Chief Minister using un-parliamentary words. After their walkout, Minister Vaithialingam called them as ‘odukaaligal’ and when it was questioned on the next day, the Speaker ruled that the use of that word was not wrong. Thus the dignity of the historic Tamil Nadu Assembly was degraded by the ADMK rulers.
Democracy was dying and being assassinated daily in the Assembly. The only achievement of Jayalalitha regime was that Tamil Nadu stood second in the country in crimes like murders and robberies.
Stalin said that they had filed a case against him for telling press reporters outside the House what they could not raise inside. Hence they were telling them in the people’s court. “But I will not seek adjournments like her in the Bangalore court in the assets case and Chennai Metropolitan Magistrate court in the Income Tax Returns case and face the case”, he said.
In 14 days of the present session 25 demands for grants for various departments had been adopted. The works to be undertaken by each department had to be announced. So far the Ministers had made 264 announcements, the estimated amount of which was Rs. 664 crore. On every day the Chief Minister  read out 18 statements under rule 110 for 92 announcements for projects worth Rs.20,831 crore.
In the last three years Jayalalitha has announced projects for over Rs.50,000 crore of which not even on worth Rs. One crore had been implemented. He challenged Jayalalitha to place a white paper on the number of projects implemented out of those announced by her so far, before the end of the present session on Aug 12.
He called upon the party workers not to get disheartened by the electoral defeat and continue to take up the cause of people as ever and get prepared to safeguard the dying legislative democracy.
Tiruchi district DMK secretary and former Minister K.N.Nehru, former Minister N.Selvaraj and others participated.

“Opposition voice throttled in TN Assembly”

Under the ADMK rule, the Opposition parties hardly have any say in the Assembly, unable even to air their views on vital issues affecting the people, DMK Rajya Sabha member Poet Kanimozhi has said.
Addressing a public meeting organised by the party at Tiruvotriyur in Tiruvallur district on August 1, she said the Assembly was known for encouraging animated discussions and heated debates on issues of public importance. It had also passed landmark resolutions and amendments to laws and advocated freedom of speech and expression. But, of late, the Opposition could not raise public issues, leave alone taking part in debates.
Under Rule 110, she said, Chief Minister Jayalalitha had made 92 statements in a fortnight. The Opposition parties could not raise any objection or pass any comment on the announcements made by the government.
 Kanimozhi said that when DMK Treasurer and floor leader Thalapathi M.K. Stalin wanted to raise the issue of violation of rules that resulted in the collapse of an 11-storey building at Moulivakkam in Chennai, he was told that since a commission was seized of the matter, it could not be discussed in the Assembly. But the Speaker allowed the Minister concerned to make a detailed statement on the same subject giving a clean chit to the authorities thus giving a direction to the enquiry.
She said while the opposition members were not allowed to raise the issues of their constituencies, the ruling party members rose up sing paeans for Jayalalitha for most of the time liberally allotted to them by degrading themselves to the lowest levels and then in one line place a simple demand for their constituencies. In their turn, the Ministers concerned rose up repeat the same exercise of singing in praise of their ‘Amma’ lowering their self-respect and dignity acknowledging that they were ministers only by the grace of their leader.
“In fact it was not their ‘Amma’ who made them ministers but by attacking Kalaignar. For instance one Vijayabhaskar was made a minister following his substandard attack against Kalaignar”, she said. It was also funny that ministers were giving replies in 2014 for questions raised in 2011. But in Parliament the questions were replied the very next month.
On Jayalalitha resorting to rule 110 to read out statements daily, Kanimozhi said it was a gross misuse of the rule meant for disclosing matters of urgent necessity on which debates were barred. Kalaignar might have used it for about ten times in five years but Jayalalitha had already scored a century and still continued, because she had no guts to face meaningful debate and questions from the DMK. She came to the House daily with papers on 110 announcements, she said.
In both Houses of Parliament un-parliamentary words were immediately expunged by the president officers. But in Tamil Nadu Assembly not the mean and despicable epithets used by ruling party members and ministers were entered into the minutes of the House like the word ‘odukaaligal’ used by a minister to refer to opposition members who stage walkout. But even most ordinary words used in the society used by opposition members were sought to be expunged, she said and cited the speech of a DMDK member complaining the spiraling prices of tomatoes and onion by which womenfolk were struggling to prepare ‘Sambaar’ on which Minister Valarmathi asked the Speaker to expunge the word ‘saambaar’.
Kanimozhi sarcastically said the only development that the State witnessed in three years of ADMK regime was the increase in incidence of crimes against women which were 6.940 in 2011, 7,192 in 2012 and 7,475 in 2013. The regime of a woman appointed government pleader two years after a 13 year girl Punitha was raped and murdered in December 2012 and that lawyer was also seeking adjournments. Thus she was preventing justice for the injustice committed to that young girl, Kanimozhi alleged.

Kalaignar greets Dipika & Joshna on winning gold in squash event

DMK President Kalaignar on Aug 3 congratulated Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinnappa on bagging gold medals in the Squash Women’s Doubles event at the just concluded Commonwealth Games 2014.
In his congratulatory message Kalaignar noted that India bagged many medals on the penultimate day of the 20th Commonwealth Games held at Glasgow in Scotland in which the pair Dipika and Joshna of Tamil Nadu had made a feat by winning the gold medal.
Dipika Pallikal and Joshna Chinappa created history by winning the first-ever gold medal in squash as they beat Jenny Duncalf and Laura Massaro of England 11-6, 11-8 in the women’s doubles squash final on the 10th day of competitions in this edition, which gave us all immense happiness. “I convey greetings to both of them”, he said.

Kalaignar condemns Lanka for remarks against TN CM

DMK President Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi condemned the “harsh and crude remarks” against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister posted on the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry website on Aug 1.
He said in a statement,
“There are reports in the evening dailies today that in an article on Tamil Nadu fishermen issue in the official website of the Defence department of the Sinhala chauvinist regime, it has been written in an uncvilised and demeaning manner about Tamil Nadu Chief Minister.
Though we have a lot of differences with the ADMK leader, from the attitude of the Sri Lankan government demeaning and belittling the letters written by her to the Prime Minister on the fishermen issue anyone can understand the nature of actions of the Sinhala regime .
The DMK has never approved of such remarks in bad taste and never failed in condemning such bad language.  Political parties in Tamil Nadu have all along been telling the Indian government not to act in favour of the Sri Lankan government on this issue.
India should treat the remarks as not just against the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister but the Prime Minister of the country. It should intervene and convey its strong condemnation to the Sri Lankan government”.
PMK founder S. Ramadoss said the Indian government should summon the Sri Lankan High Commissioner and demand an apology from Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the country’s Defence Secretary.
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) leader B.S. Gnanadesikan said it was mischievous on the part of the Sri Lankan government not to prevent such posts on the official website.
MDMK leader Vaiko decried the article saying it revealed “the perverted mindset of the Sri Lankan government.”
CPI(M) State secretary G. Ramakrishnan said it was condemnable to ridicule a letter written by the Chief Minister to the Prime Minister.

DMK to bear educational expenses of MBBS student

DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M.K.Stalin handing over a cheque to Ajithkumar in Tiruchi on Aug 2.
The Youth Wing of the DMK will bear the entire educational expenses fee of a poor student from Dharmapuri district, who has secured an MBBS seat at the K.A.P. Viswanatham Government Medical College, Tiruchi, said Thalapathi M.K. Stalin here on Aug 2.
Announcing the party’s intention to help the student, Ajithkumar, the DMK Treasurer, gave away Rs.25, 000 to the visibly moved student for his immediate expenses in the presence of his mother at a function in Tiruchi. Stalin’s gesture follows report on the student’s inability to pay fees due to poverty. The Dharmapuri district wing of the party too had confirmed the family’s economic status.
Hailing from Keezh Morappur village near Arur in Dharmapuri district, Ajithkumar had secured 1,148 marks in Plus Two public examination. With a cut-off of 196.5, he got admission to the city college.
The boy’s mother, Mathammal, ekes out a living by selling idlis and dosas in a pushcart in her village. She had to rely on the support of a few philanthropists for the education of her two sons. “I did not expect my son to join a medical college,” Mathammal said. Stalin assured them that the youth wing of the party would bear the expenditure for the entire course and advised Ajithukumar not to worry about paying the fees for his medical degree.

TN tops in deterioration of law and order: Stalin

Refuting the claims of Chief Minister Jayalalitha on law and order situation in the State, DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M.K.Stalin said that on the other hand Tamil Nadu stood first in south India and second at the national level in deterioration of law and order.
He was addressing a public meeting in Chennai on August 6 to explain the points on the debate of the party on the demand for grants for Police department in the Assembly, which its legislators could not place before the House because of their suspension for the entire session.
He said the party had to place its points of view on the subject before the forum of the people as it could not be placed in the Assembly. The people were very well aware of the perils of democracy in the Assembly under the ADMK regime and how the legislature had been tuned to autocracy. Under Jayalalitha regime people’s grievances could not be voiced in the Assembly.
The Speaker of the House was expected to be nonpartisan and neutral but the present incumbent was a black mark in the history of presiding officers of legislatures. If permission was refused to place the issues of people, we have people’s forum. Chief Minister Jayalalitha always arrived at the House at about 11 am or 12 noon. The legislative practice was the members raising from their seats and paying respects when the Speaker arrived at the House. Only to avoid this Jayalalitha was arriving late.
Question Hour was very important feature of the legislature when the issues and grievances of the people were raised and the response of the government was obtained. Usually Jayalalitha was not present in the House when this hour was taken up. The ruling party members and ministers were speaking in a degrading manner about 91-year old and five- time Chief Minister Kalaignar and when the DMK members sought to explain they were not permitted. When they staged protest walkouts the minister called them as ‘odukaaligal’. For having briefed this to reporters case had been filed against him and the court has sent summon to him. 
Stating that he was ready to go to the court and face the case filed by this government, Stalin said after all he has not received summon from Bangalore special court in disproportionate assets case or from the Metropolitan Magistrate Court in Income tax case. He would not seek repeated adjournments like Jayalalitha, he asserted.
Whenever Jayalalitha came to power in the State, looting of sand became the order of the day. There was an alliance between the regime and sand mafia. There were reports that the daily collection of commission in sand quarries was to the order of Rs. One and a half crore, of which the share of panchayat president was Rs. one lakh, vice-president Rs. 50,000, ward member Rs. 20,000, and important persons Rs.20,000 to Rs. 70,000. Revenue officers and police personnel who tried to prevent these illegal actions were mowed down and killed, reports now and then indicated.
In this regard, Stalin cited various strictures passed by courts and the the Madras High Court Bench in Madurai on the criticising the State government for using machineries to quarry sand from riverbeds “perhaps under pressure from lorry owners” and for not disclosing the correct quantity of sand quarried from each location. Passing orders in a batch of writ petitions related to sand mining in Cauvery and Kollidam river beds, Justices V. Ramasubramanian and V.M. Velumani said: “The actual statistics (with respect to quantity of sand mined) appear to have been buried deep into the very same sand,” Stalin quoted reports. He said had he been permitted he would have raised this issue in the Assembly on the day.
Disputing the claim of Jayalalitha in the Assembly on the day that Tamil Nadu was remaining as a ‘garden of peace’, Stalin said that there were 3,525 murders, 1,350 thefts and 1,023 wayside robberies in TN. Cases were not registered in police stations in order to cover up the deterioration of law and order situation, in which Tamil Nadu under Jayalalitha regime stood second in India after Uttar Pradesh and first in South India. The culprits in the murders of Pottu Suresh in Madurai and K.N.Nehru’s younger brother Ramajeyam in Tiruchi had not been nabbed so far, he said adding there were number of such pending cases in the State.
61 persons had been killed and hundreds injured severely in the Maulivakkam building collapse, he said alleging that the CMDA and the local body had not given proper approval and all conditions and rules and regulations had been floated for giving approval for this building. He has filed a petition in the Madras High Court which had been taken up by the first bench of the Chief Justice which had directed the Tamil Nadu government to submit a status report on the building collapse incident at Moulivakkam in Chennai on June 28 which claimed 61 lives
The report shall contain details such as the extent of excavation into the 11-storey structure, which collapsed due to poor quality of design and construction materials. Stalin expressed confidence in the guilty in this case being caught.
Braving heavy rain thousands of people attended the meeting presided over by Triplicane area DMK secretary ARPM Kamaraj. J.Anbalagan MLA, A.Rahmankhan, former Chennai Mayor M.Subramanian and others also spoke.

“TN should be declared as drought-affected”

On the increasing demand for declaring Tamil Nadu as drought affected, DMK President Kalaignar said this demand was raised in detail by DMK member Kanimozhi in the Rajya Sabha. Tamil Nadu is in the grip of reduction of agricultural production, severe drinking water scarcity, cattle feed scarcity and drought throughout the State. After the ADMK assumed power in 2011, during the last three years even the average rain fall was not received. In 2013 north-east and south west monsoons also failed. In the last three years Kuruvai cultivation could not at all be undertaken. Even with the dawn of August Mettur reservoir was not opened for irrigation. Farmers could not repay loans and could not also avail of new loans and suffered a lot. The CPM and CPI had also placed the demand. Since 2012 over 10 farmers have committed suicide due to poverty. In this situation, the government should come forward to announce Tamil Nadu as drought affected and save farmers by giving due relief, Kalaignar said.
Asked about the fast undertaken by Thanjavur district farmers Association demanding arrears for the supply of sugarcane, Kalaignar said, intervening in the speech of a DMDK member in the Assembly on July 14, the Industries Minister of the ADMK regime informed that steps were being taken for the distribution of arrears amount and in 15 days the process would be over. But it is said even after those 15 days many private sugar mills’ authorities were dragging without paying the arrears for sugarcane. Only the private sugar mill in Perambalur district has distributed arrears in full but others have not implemented government’s order. Hence the farmers association has demanded the government to take steps for getting this arrears failing which agitation would be conducted.
DMK stage demo: The DMK workers staged a demonstration in front of the Panagal building in Thanjavur on Aug 6 urging the Government to declare Thanjavur as drought hit. They said that the ADMK government failed to get the due share of Cauvery water for Tamil Nadu from Karnataka. There was no kuruvai for the past two years.
The district should be declared as drought hit and the State government should do away with the land tax and water tax taking into consideration the severe drought conditions prevailing in the district. All the farm loans procured by farmers from the commercial and cooperative banks till April 2014 should be written off. The government should come forward to provide fresh farm loans to the pump set farmers immediately, they demanded. They demanded payment of Rs. 5,000 for agriculture labourers and Rs. 25,000 for farmers as relief. Ko. Si. Mani, senior leader of the party and former Minister led the agitation.

“People ridicule the claims of CM on power situation”

The people of Tamil Nadu who have direct experience of the power shortage in the State were only ridiculing the claims of the Chief Minister and the Minister of the department that the power generation in the State was not affected, said DMK President Kalaignar,
Answering a question on this regard on Aug 6, Kalaignar said there were 1,385 electric sub-stations in the state. Still as there were no sub-stations in many required places power supply get disconnected for hours together due to ‘overload’ and ‘low voltage’. In the meanwhile, power generation has been halted in Vallur and North Chennai thermal power stations, causing loss of 1,100 MW. In the night of Aug 3, power generation was halted due to technical errors in the 600 MW first unit of North Chennai extension and in Vallur at the same time the generation was stopped due to ‘boiler tube puncture’, Kalaignar explained.
Answering another question on false reports being published daily by ‘Dinamalar’ daily, Kalaignar said the daily had to ‘balance’ this way by publishing false reports on DMK in its fear of Jayalalitha’s ire because of reports on government’s failures. It was the same case with ‘Kumudam Reporter’ periodical. However, the DMK cadre and neutral minded knew that they were all false.
Referring to the reports in dailies on free bus passes for senior citizens awaited for three years now, Kalaignar said that he had already referred to this on May 20. The ADMK election manifesto for 2011 Assembly elections promised that ‘”free bus passes would be issued to all over 58 years in local and nearby towns and villages by government buses, hostels would be set up for the stay of elders, elderly men and women and children without support where they would be provided food for three times a day, reading rooms, dhyana mandapam and natural ambience” and believing them true people also voted for them. But three years had rolled out since the ADMK came to power. Jayalalitha reads out two or three statements a day under rule 110 and sought publicity but she seemed to have forgotten her assurance to senior citizens, Kalaignar said.
Asked about ‘Amma canteens’, Kalaignar referred to a report in the daily ‘The Times of India’ on July 17 under the title ‘There’s trouble cooking at Amma canteens in city’, which stated “After earning praise and adulation from people across the world, Amma canteens are in for some unwelcome attention.   For, the corporation’s vigilance department is turning a hawk eye on them.   A year after the subsidized canteens were launched, the vigilance department has found discrepancies in their functioning; complaints range from poor accounting and stock-keeping to vegetables being sold outside.   The Corporation’s vigilance officers conducted surprise checks last week at canteens in the Rajiv Gandhi Government General Hospital and on S.N. Chetty Street in Royapuram.  “We got the most complaints from these canteens.  We found that no register was being maintained for attendance or accounts for vegetables and ingredients” said a vigilance officer”. 
This was the condition of irregularities in ‘Amma’ canteens, and it was said that vegetables there were sold in open markets by some workers there, Kalaignar said.

“What is the reply to the questions of the HC?”

Recalling that he had raised the same questions raised by the Madras High Court on the appointment of one-man commission headed by retired High Court judge Justice R. Reghupathy to enquire the Maulivakkam building collapse and disaster,  DMK President Kalaignar asked the ADMK regime what would be reply of it to the questions raised by the High Court now.
Replying to a question on the observations of the first bench of the Madras High Court headed by Chief Justice S.K.Kaul being the same as those he had raised on July 5, Kalaignar said that he had said in detail about the building collapse and the actions of the government in his epistle at the end of which he alleged that “the appointment of Justice R. Reghupathy as the one-man commission of inquiry was eyewash, as the retired judge had already headed many panels. Justice Reghupathy replaced Justice Thangaraj, appointed to probe the alleged violations in the construction of the new Secretariat. Further, Justice Reghupathy is president of the Tamil Nadu Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission and member of the Advisory Board, constituted under the National Security Act, 1980, and the Goondas Act. It is clear from all these facts that this enquiry is motivated and eyewash”. The same opinion has been conveyed by the High Court Chief Justice also. Though most of dailies here have not published the report ‘The Times of India’ published on the first page itself asking ““Is he a ‘superhero’ and the only competent person to juggle around several sensitive assignments simultaneously?” The Madras High Court wondered as to how an ex-judge of the court, R Reghupathy, was named to probe the June 28 Moulivakkam building collapse, while his hands are already full with other responsibilities such as investigating the new secretariat issue and heading the Tamil Nadu State Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission as well as the statutory board to review Goondas Act detentions.”
Kalaignar said that he “had raised these questions even when Justice Reghupathy was appoined as the one man commission. But Tamil Nadu government did not provide any reply. But the Chief Justice Bench of the High Court has raised these questions. What is the reply of the TN government? If the same question was raised by a High Court judge during the DMK rule, what would have Jayalalitha done? Would not she issue a statement that the ‘minority government’ should resign within 24 hours? What will she do now?” Kalaignar asked.

Opposition not allowed to raise issues, says Stalin

DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M K Stalin slammed the ruling ADMK MLAs and Chief Minister  Jayalalitha for denial of opportunity to DMK members to raise various issues concerning the welfare of the state in the Assembly.
The tradition of Chief Ministers according respect to leaders of the Opposition parties during debates in the Assembly has been given a short shift by the ADMK government, Stalin alleged on Aug 1.
Addressing a public meeting on ‘The plight of democracy in the Assembly,’ organised by the party in Madurai, he recalled how the former Chief Ministers and leaders such as Kamarajar, Anna, Kalaignar and M.G.R allowed Opposition members to even make personal attacks in the Assembly. “But now, Opposition parties are not allowed even to raise issues of public importance,” he said.
He said that the Tamil Nadu Assembly had seen illustrious Speakers like U. Krishna Rao, Chellapandiyan, S.B.Adityan, Munu Adhi, K.A.Mathialagan, K.Rajaram, Tamilkudimagan, PTR Palanivelrajan, K.Kalaimuthu and R.Avudayappan presiding over the proceedings but the present incumbent is seen by people differently as an eye sore.
Rule 110 was not meant for announcing projects but only for informing the House on urgent matters of public importance, which should not be criticised.
All Chief Ministers had used the rule only for the purpose it was meant. But Jayalalitha used this rule only for announcing projects/schemes. But they have not implemented even one percent of projects announced like that. In 14 days of the present session 25 demands for grants for various departments had been adopted. The works to be undertaken by each department had to be announced.
So far the Ministers had made 264 announcements, the estimated amount of which was Rs. 664 crore. On every day the Chief Minister has read out 18 statements under rule 110 for 92 announcements worth Rs.20,831 crore.
In the last three years Jayalalitha has announced projects for over Rs.50,000 crore of which not even on worth Rs. One crore had been implemented. This is not a functioning government but only an announcing government, Stalin said adding opportunities were refused to raise all these in the Assembly.
 Stalin said deliberate attempts were being made by the ruling party members to make “cheap and defaming remarks” against DMK President Kalaignar in the Assembly.
Stalin reeled out statistics on incidences of crime in Tamil Nadu (Till July 31 since she assumed power, there were 3,525 murders, 1,352 thefts, 11,120 chain snatchings and 1,023 robberies) and demanded a reply from Jayalalitha on the law and order situation in the State. Stalin alleged that since they were not allowed to raise the issues democratically in the Assembly, the DMK was taking up the issues to people through the public meeting.
The meeting was organized in the wake of speaker P Dhanapal suspending DMK MLAs from the Tamil Nadu legislative Assembly for the rest of the session as their “conduct was not in consonance with the dignity of the House.”
Stating that suspending them was unfair and undemocratic, Stalin said that they were only raising various issues concerning welfare of public in the Assembly.
“We are elected representatives of an assembly segment. But we are not allowed to raise problems faced by the public in our constituency,” he alleged. Stalin said that ADMK members were going beyond preventing them to speak and deliberately defame Kalaignar. “How can we tolerate when Thalaivar was deliberately defamed?” Stalin asked in reasoning DMK’s walk out from the Assembly proceedings.
Stalin said that out of 15 days the Assembly session was held, DMK members participated in the proceedings on nine days and staged walkout on six days.
“Walking out is a conventional way of expressing a party’s displeasure if their demands are not met or if the ruling party fails to give satisfactory replies to the issues raised by them,” he said.
He also said that DMK members only wanted a proper discussion on the Moulivakkam building collapse, but were denied permission to speak on the issue. “We walked out. But State Housing Minister Vaithilingam used an unparliamentary word to refer us,” Stalin alleged.
Thiru Stalin said that in the subsequent days also they were not allowed to raise the other problems like price rise. The rally was part of a State-wide protest organised by the party. Kalaignar addressed a rally in Chennai on July 31.
Reception: Earlier, on his arrival at Madurai airport Stalin was given a rousing reception by functionaries and thousands of party cadre. Later he visited ailing veteran party member Karu. Thyagarajan and enquired about his health. He also went to the residence of Thottanderi Subramanian, a party veteran who recently expired, and offered floral tributes to his portrait. He was accompanied by former Ministers Pon.Muthuramalingam, I.Periyasamy and KKSSR Ramachandran, district secretary P.Murthy and others.
Summons issued: Meanwhile, the principal sessions court in Chennai has served summons on Stalin and CPI(M) State secretary G. Ramakrishnan to appear on September 3 and 2 respectively in connection with the defamation cases filed against them by Chief Minister Jayalalitha.

Shame of a woman CM maligning women of TN

It was atrocious on the part of Chief Minister Jayalalitha claiming in the State Assembly that Tamil Nadu, under her regime, was the safest State for women in the country, even as the records presented by herself and the agencies concerned showed that crimes against women were on the increase in the State. But, in the absence of any meaningful opposition in the House, she had the tenacity to say “Women are bravely coming forward to lodge complaints on crimes against them in my rule” and that crimes against women were gradually decreasing in the State from 2011, when she took over as the CM.
But what is the reality?
On July 20, the daily “The Hindu’ reported under the heading, “Rapes in Tamil Nadu on the rise over last 3 years”, it was reported,
“Crime against women, especially rape and even incest rape (sexual assault of girls/woman by those within the family) incidents, are on the rise over the last three years in Tamil Nadu.
According to the Crime in India 2013 data of the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), there had been 7,475 cases of crime against women which included eve-teasing, stalking, domestic violence by husbands, in-laws, harassment at work place.
In 2013, Tamil Nadu a share of 2.41 per cent in the country’s total crime against women, Tamil Nadu accounted for 923 rape victims during the previous year. Victims in the age group of 14 to 18 and 18 to 30 were 280 and 395, while there were 61 and 78 victims in the age groups of up to 10 and 10 to 14 respectively.
As many as 93 victims were in the age group of 30 to 50 and 16 were aged 50 and above. Cases of incest rape were six and the victims were in the age group of 10 to 30.
With regard to girls of younger age being victims of sexual assault and abuse, law enforcers say that stringent law i.e., the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act came into force only recently.
When the cases registered under this provision reach a logical conclusion before the trial courts, the quantum of punishment could have a deterrent effect.
Statistics indicate that even children below the age of 10 have been victims and similarly sexual assault of women in the age group of 50 and above was also reported from the State.
The statistics of 2013 shows a steady increase compared to 2012 and 2011. Total cases of crime against women in 2012 was 7,192 and 6,940 cases in 2011. As far as cases of rape were concerned, there were 737 cases in 2012 while it was 677 in 2011. Cases of incest which were 2 in 2011 went up to 4 in 2012 and it had become 6 in 2013.
In more than 95 per cent of cases of rape, the offenders were either relatives or known persons.
In 2013 of 923 cases of rape, six offenders were parents/family members, 98 were relatives, 263 were neighbours and 531 were known persons. In 2012, all the offenders in 737 cases came under this category of known accused while in 2011 of the 677 cases, 675 were known offenders”.
Another report in the same daily on July 27 under the headline,   ‘Majority of sexual assault victims in T.N. are minor girls’, stated:
“A majority of sexual assault victims in Tamil Nadu are minor girls, according to a study conducted by ‘Evidence,’ a Madurai-based NGO.
The victims, among whom Dalits accounted for 46 per cent, had also been subjected to humiliation, torture and threatened with deadly weapons by the accused prior to committing the crime. The ‘Evidence’ team met the victims across the State with data accessed through Right to Information Act.
In 2013, the police had registered 923 cases of rape and sexual assault. The NGO, which had taken 573 cases for study, found that over 80 per cent of the crimes were reported from villages and around 15 per cent from urban locations.
Even after several months, victims continued to remain in a state of trauma due to inaction of the police. Absence of stringent action, and repeated threats from the accused compelled some of the victims to even end their lives. What causes concern was the attitude of the police in dealing with the cases, the study said.
Speaking to The Hindu, executive director of the Evidence, A. Kathir, said women, particularly minors, suffered multiple injuries during the assault. When the victims resisted, they were attacked with weapons. “In some cases, the women were kidnapped and subjected to physical torture. The study showed that out of 573 victims, 199 were Dalits and 231 were caste Hindus. The shocking revelation was that 65 per cent of the victims were less than 18 years of age,” he noted.
During interactions with the victims, the ‘Evidence’ team found that the police officers encouraged “out-of-court” settlement and mediated in getting compensation from the accused, Kathir said.
The government should amend laws to ensure that the accused were not let on bail at least for 12 months. It should establish a Criminal Justice Commission to put an end to atrocities against women, by involving the police, administration and health officials and the judiciary, the NGO urged”.
According to the National Crime Records Bureau, on an average one child and three women are affected daily by sexual assault in the State. As many as 2,603 cases were filed in the first five months [of the current year]. A total number of 333 women are sexually assaulted.  The gang rape of a dalit girl in Karur and abduction and rape of minor girls at a children’s home in Pollachi were some of the recent incidents.
The government was so indifferent towards sexual assault on women that it took two years to appoint a lawyer in the case of Punitha of Sri Vaikuntam near Tuticorin who was raped and murdered. And much worse, the appointed lawyer had been seeking adjournments repeatedly.
But Jayalalitha dared to give a new interpretation to the cases of rapes and sexual assaults which is an affront to womanhood in Tamil Nadu.
As many as 923 rape cases were reported in Tamil Nadu in 2013, a 25% increase in comparison with the 737 cases reported in 2012.
Jayalalitha, who is in charge of the home department, told the State Assembly on Aug 6 that several of the 923 cases were actually instances of elopement and consensual sex that police recorded as rape. A number of such cases were relating to elopement of girls with men whom they liked. Cases were registered as the girls were minors, she added. There were also incidents of women complaining of rape when the men refused to marry them after having a relationship. In nearly 50 per cent of the 923 cases of rape registered last year, the complaint was made by women after they got separated from the men, Chief Minister said, adding that police filed 53 rape cases that investigations revealed were not rape but molestation and sexual harassment  only 332 cases pertained to “forcible rape.”
This is not a western country where pre-marital sex and so-called ‘consensual sex’ were treated lightly but cried down. No women in India, more particularly come forward to boldly admit forcible rape and report to police, fearing social repercussions and stigma. The families of such victims also try to cover up fearing for the future life of the affected. Only the victim has the right to say whether the so-called ‘consensus’ was voluntarily offered or ‘extracted by coercion’.  When such are the social conditions here, known well to all and Jayalalitha too, her statement like this is most condemnable and maligning women in Tamil Nadu. In all such cases the words of the victim women are final and could not and should not be disputed, even according to many verdicts of the Supreme Court. Jayalalitha’s strange explanation is akin to that of Mulayam Singh Yadhav, which had been condemned by women’s organisations all over the country.
Only a few days back, Shiv Sena drew ire of women’s organisations and civil rights groups besides many political parties for its controversial editorial in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’ defending rape accused IPS officer Sunil Paraskar, accused of raping a city-based model, and made light of the allegations against him saying it has become a “fashion” to charge men with rape. “Cases of charging men with molestation and rape in hi-fi societies to create hype is on a rise now. It has almost become a fashion. After he has served for so many years in the police force, one model now charges DIG Sunil Praskar with rape and in one night he becomes a villain. Such accusations have become good weapons to seek personal revenge,” the party said in its mouthpiece ‘Saamana’. “New laws were made after the shameful Nirbhaya incident, but have cases of rape decreased?” it asked.”When the truth has to come out, it will. But till then the media trial the accused has to go through damages his morale,” it said. “All the laws in the country favour women so anyone can slap any charge against anyone. The judicial system has to open its eyes and ensure that justice is served to the innocent,” the edit said.The Sena mouthpiece questioned the model’s intentions to file rape charges against the DIG when everything between the two “was fine” till now.”What is the model’s background? How did she suddenly make a rape accusation when everything between them was fine until now? This question comes to the mind of a common man but the police investigation seems to ignore these questions,” it said.It questioned the delay in filing the case saying that a woman who has been subjected to such a torture will not be able to wait for so long to get justice. “This model filed charges after six months.... We have to remember after the unfortunate rape incident at Shakti mills, the victim filed her complaint in a couple of hours. No woman will be able to bear this inhuman treatment on her for even a minute. She would file a complaint immediately,” the Sena said adding that the facts of the case should be brought in public as soon as possible.
In what manner Jayalalitha’s definition of rape case different from the reactionary view espoused by the Hindutva outfit against victims of rape incidents. But it is most unfortunate that the media in Tamil Nadu and women’s organisations remained indifferent to this atrocious maligning of women by a woman Chief Minister of the State.
The number has gone up since women have got the courage to lodge complaints, according to Jayalalitha. But the reality as everyone knew the complaints lodged with the police by women are only the tip of the iceberg because most of such heinous offences are not reported.
The ADMK government should take positive and sincere efforts to prevent crimes against women and ensure their safety instead of boasting of achievements which were not made.  r

Majority is an identity not whole truth, says Perasiriyar

Stating that a legislature was not meant of only the ruling party, DMK General Secretary Prof K. Anbazhagan said majority was only an identity and not whole truth because the present majority would turn into minority tomorrow, the present ruling party would turn into an opposition party tomorrow.
Addressing a public meeting on ‘The peril of democracy in Tamil Nadu Assembly’ at Kancheepuram on August 1, Prof Anbzhagan recalled the words of Arignar Anna about democracy as the best form of governance and said the present rulers were functioning against democratic norms.
Anna also said that victory and defeat were two sides of the same coin and people should not sulk by defeat and become arrogant following victory. Perasiriyar also cited the American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson who said that ‘every man and woman had role in democracy, their voice for right should reverberate in the legislature, only if it reverberated like that it was legislature, it was a blessing obtained legally for the public to get opportunity to voice their grievances there’. It was to protect democracy in America in that manner that presidents like Abraham Lincoln came to power there.
He said when Anna and himself were the members of the Assembly in 1957, Anna told the then Speaker Dr. U.Krishna Rao, a physician by profession, that as doctor he would be prescribing nutritious food for weaker children and ordinary food for strong children. “So too, we in the opposition are weak and the ruling party is strong. Hence, the Speaker should be in support of us and make us stronger by being considerate”, Anna said and the then Speaker as well as the ruling Congress party conceded his plea. That was democratic spirit, Perasiryar added.
Though there were only 234 members in the Assembly they represented all the six crore people in the State. The members of the ruling and opposition parties were representatives of the people. He recalled the speech of an opposition party leader in the Lok Sabha in 1967, when he was also an MP, that “To whichever party I may belong to, we, the members of Parliament have right over the whole of India and can speak for the rights of all people living in India. The rights of all are vested with us and we have the duty to protect them”. He said he was referring to this only to drive the point that it was only for certain procedures that there was division between ruling and opposition parties and as far as rights were concerned there was no difference or distinction. All members of the legislature received the same salary, if some of them were ministers they had some concessions. The opposition parties had the right to question the deed of ministers. Whether in Parliament or in Assemblies the first item taken up was ‘Question Hour’, which was the lifeline of the legislature and the right of the public. The question hour was the basic forum to redress the grievances of people and it could not be dispensed with or duration reduced. But such a valuable time was brought to ridicule by this lady (Jayalalitha) and ignored without providing answers.
So also the lady was making a mockery of rule 110 of the House by reading out all and sundry statements every day. According to this rule if any unforeseen urgent work relating to some department had to be carried out involving funds beyond the budget and provision had to be made, this 110 rule would be used to get the approval of the House. But this lady invariably came to the Assembly with ‘110 statement’ and left with ‘111’ (indicating duping).
Perasiriyar cited a few such announcements made by her one of which was “10 lakh new power connections- Chief Minister announces in the Assembly”. Due to power shortage industries in Tirupur, Coimbatore and other place in TN had been facing closure and farmers were not getting power for irrigation. When the situation was such how could 10 lakh new power connections be given? Won’t it take at least one year, was there man power for it and were there people to avail of new power connections, he asked. This was only to hoodwink people in the next elections as one of their achievements. But who would be in the know of the truth, the officials and people like us with information.
Similarly she announced 100 more mini buses to be operated. Already the plying mini buses had been halted for want of repairs and spare parts. Those purchased during the DMK rule had been used without replenishing. Already there were problems and how and when would they operate another 100 mini buses, he asked.
She has announced in August that two engineering colleges would be started in Cuddalore and Shevapet, should not this announcement be made prior to May. When there were reports that the government had not evacuated power generated by wind mills and the wind mill owners were not paid for the power evacuated by the TNEB, Jayalalitha announced that two power sub-stations would be set up in West Mambalam and Porur at a cost of Rs. 338 crore.
In the political name of the lady (Amma) so many schemes were announced. The entrepreneurship scheme started during Kalaignar’s rule was renamed as ‘Amma entrepreneurship scheme’. Had they wanted to get rid of Kalaignar’s name they could have christened it as “CM entrepreneurship scheme”, but everything was named after ‘amma’. In order to please her, their party functionaries would buy if something called ‘Amma beedi’ came to the market. In a lighter vein he said ‘Amma cheroot’ would not be proper because it could not stand the competition of the expertise of the ruling party in ‘suruttal’ (meaning looting). (Laughter)
He said DMK legislators like Stalin, Duraimurugan were well experienced in legislature and administration, they meticulously did their home work before coming to the House and hence when they spoke they were accused of intervening and evicted. As they evicted four time they announced suspension for the entire session. Even during Kalaignar’s rule there were walkout but he did not relish it and asked them to return to the House. Only in the presence of opposition parties should the ruling party reel out its achievements giving place to the opposition to refute the claims of the ruling party. This was the lesson taught by Anna and hence Kalaignar would send ministers to bring back the opposition members. But now this lady thought that the legislature belonged to them.
“Majority alone was not the legislature. It was only an identity and not whole truth. Today’s majority would become minority tomorrow. We were ruling party yesterday and opposition party today. The largest party Congress was ruling party earlier and now it was not even the Opposition party in Parliament. Hence those who respected democracy respected people. All in the House should be respected but the ruling party in Tamil Nadu were treating meanly and evicting traditional parties like not only the DMK, but also the Congress, the CPM and the CPI with the special distinction of being led by D. Pandian (laugher) etc., just because they demanded that the DMK members should be asked to return to the House and participate in the proceedings. The reason for this was that that the lady did not want to hear the voice of the opposition. A legislature should have both ruling and opposition parties, there could be no Leader of the Opposition but there should not be absence of opposition parties. If all were ruling party members in the House it won’t be considered as democratic norm. Hence only to condemn this attitude of not giving due respect to opposition that this meeting was arranged, he said.
He said such a situation of such a big damage to democracy has arisen because those who had scant respect for democracy was seated on the seat of rule, these were the results of this lady occupying the seat of power.
All departments in TN were dishonest, the regime, which included not only ministers but also officials were dishonest, he alleged adding in the last elections the DMK didn’t face such a big downfall not because the people did not support us but because of a systematic fraud at the time of polling. The Tamil Nadu Chief Election Officer promulgated prohibitory orders under section 144 two days prior to polling, prohibiting workers of all political parties except the ruling party from moving out, using which they distributed money to voters door by door without any check. Further to ensure their victory they made a ‘memory manipulation’ in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) by which the votes polled for any party was accounted for the ruling party. This was reported in dailies in the north.
Section 144 prohibitory orders could be promulgated in any tense area but not for the entire State when with the help of the police the ruling party cadre freely moved around distributing money. Thus because of the wrong doing of the election officers along with the police department and the injustice committed by the CEO, the DMK lost so badly, he said.
“We are prepared to accept the victory of anyone getting the support of the people and concede our defeat. But irregularities and atrocity were committed, with the help of officials the present ruling party let loose anarchy which could not but be condemned.” Perasiriyar said.
Giving details of the deterioration of law and order in the State, he said even the police force were worried and concede that they had never witnessed such an anarchy in the State ever before. Hence the government of the day had failed to provide peaceful life to people. Referring to the Maulivakkam building disaster, he said it was because of the deep rooted corruption in administration. Hence the present regime was not trustworthy, he said appealing to people to trust the DMK and entrust the State to the party in their own interest.
District DMK secretary and former Minister T.M.Anbarasan and others also spoke.  Later Prof Anbazhagan also addressed a similar meeting at Arkonam in Vellore district presided over by district DMK secretary R. Gandhi.

Is this called ‘safety for women’, asks Kalaignar: Jayalalitha’s 13-point action plan remains only on paper

Countering Chief Minister Jayalalitha’s claim that Tamil Nadu, under her regime was the safest State for women, DMK President Kalaignar on August 7 listed some of the instances of rape and murder of women in the last two years and said her announcement of 13-point programme for safety of women seemed to be only on papers.
In his epistle to party cadre on the day, Kalaignar said despite reports on increasing crimes os murders, robberies and rapes, the ADMK regime was cheating themselves and the people of the State as if the State remained as a garden of peace. The debate on demand for grants for Home department was usually taken up for two days which has now been shrunk to one day showing how much democracy was permitted in this regime.
It has been reported in dailies that in her reply to the debate on the grants for the department, Chief Minister Jayalalitha claimed that ‘Tamil Nadu is the safest State for women in India’. We do not know whether she had said so in her inability to say that TN was not safe for men, Kalaignar said and cited some instances to show how safe women were now in the State.
Under ADMK regime, two girls of a school hostel in Pollachi were raped. Vimala near Nannilam, Malar in Koyambedu, Dalit student Vinitha were raped and murdered. Further in the list of rape and murder were: 9-year old Gayathri in Andiappan village near Tirupattur in Vellore district 29.12.2012, Nandini in Sivagiri 22.1.2013, Vijaya in Saidapet 11.1.2013, 13-year old school student Punitha in Srivaikuntam in Tuticorin district 22.12.2012, 11-year old dalit girl in Nagapattinam district 23.12.2012, Suganthi on the banks of Manimutharu in Vriddhachalam 27.12.2012, young woman Sandhya in Manchakuzhi village near Chidambaram 27.12.2012, Menaka in Thatharavalasai village in Harur taluk, Dhamapuri 30.12.2012, Mariammal in Tuticorin 29.12.2012, student Kalki in Villupuram Vanur Rukmanipuram 5.1.2013, 12-year girl in Udamalpet, 18 year old woman gang raped near district collector’s office in Namakkal 6.1.2013, 17 year old Abhinaya in Thimiri near Arcot in Vellore district self immolated to save her chastity 6.1.2013, rape attempt on a plus 2 student in Mugapair 6.1.2013, Ambattur, Premalatha in Pozhichalur, Chennai raped and killed 6.1.2013, Meena abducted and gang raped near Thotttiam in Tiruchi district, Kannamma, servant maid raped by house owner in Koyambedu, Chennai 7.1.2013, 11 year old girl raped while shepherding 4.1.2013, a lady worker of a xerox shop raped in Adambakkam Chennai 4.1.2013, girl sexually assaulted in Mylapore and fleeing driver’s mother committed suicide on 6.2.2013, 16 old girl kidnapped and raped in Dharmapuri on 17.2.2013….. and the list goes long.
 ‘The Hindu’ daily published a lengthy article on 25.6.2014 relating to this sexual atrocity. Its heading is “Crime against women, especially against Dalits has been quite frequent in the central districts in the past few years; while the Police are tardy in registering complaints, the indifference of authorities to the plight of the marginalised sections continues- HURT and MUTE”. In that article, besides writing about the rape and murder of Vinitha in Karur, they have described that the dream of her parents about their daughter is shattered.
The daily has listed,
v In February 2012, 19 year old girl student was raped and murdered in Amoor and her decomposed body was found twenty months later in Cauvery bed.
v In March 2012 a 12 year old Dalit girl was raped and murdered in Sirkali of Nagapattinam district.
v In December 2012 in Thalaignayiru in Nagapattinam district, eight year old Dalit girl was raped.
v In January 2014, in the Nagudi police station limits of Puduckottai district, 17 year old woman was raped and murdered.
In April 2014, in Vedarayam of Nagapattinam district 8 year old girl student was sexually assaulted. 
Not only sexual crimes. ‘The Times of India’ on 20.6.2014 published a detailed article on robberies under ADMK regime. It stated that the State police were still unable to nab a gang which had been robbing by diverting attention. This group has so far stolen jewels and cash of Rs,20 lakh so far from 2013 in over 180 incidents. Among the cases filed in 2013, culprits in 85 cases were still to be nabbed. None of the 25 robberies by diverting attention had been solved.
But in her inaugural address at the conference of district collectors and police officers in Chennai, Jayalalitha claimed that as far as law and order situation was concerned all present there could feel proud and satisfied. Last year also in this conference she said the law and order situation was excellent in TN.
Kalaignar cited some instances to remind people about the law and order situation in TN now.
Sholavandan ADMK MLA Karuppaiah was saved by locking in a hotel room from the assault of an armed gang led by ADMK union secretary near Vadipatti. In the first week of November 2013, nine were murdered in one day in Tiruchi, Thanjavur and Nagapattinam.
Countering Jayalalitha’s claim that the government was granting permission to anybody who wanted to stage protests as it was their democratic right adding that Tamil Nadu could take pride in what was happening here, Kalaignar said the High Court judge Justice Sasidaran directed the police to grant permission for the public meeting of the DMDK in November 2013 to explain the resolutions of their general council at Cuddalore.
Orders prohibiting the entry of PMK leader Dr. Ramadoss into the districts of Madurai and Cuddalore, VCK President Tirumavalavan into Villupuram district were issued, and prohibitory order under sec 144 all over Dharmapuri district was promulgated by this regime thus suppressing democratic activities.
Only on Court orders permission was granted for the meetings of DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M.K.Stalin at Salem on 16.2.2013, at Karur on 15.12.2012 and in Tuticorin on 28.12.2012 after the police refused permission.
Not only for DMK meetings, Kalaignar said and asked whether permission was granted for the birth day functions of Super Star Rajnikanth and Vijay and for the TESO conference in Chennai.
The pro-ADMK daily ‘Daily Thanthi’ itself published a report under the heading ’16 murders in a month in Chennai’ among which in 5 culprits were not arrested. Another certificate issued to the police was: “The Madras High Court Bench here came down heavily on the police officers “who think they are a law unto themselves just because they are vested with certain powers under the Code of Criminal Procedure and that the common people are at their mercy” (The Hindu 14.2.2012).
Thus time won’t be sufficient for writing about instances to show that law and order were not properly maintained by the ADMK regime. But Jayalalitha invariably claimed on all occasions the TN excelled in maintenance of law and order and dailies in TN publishing them prominently. By repeatedly telling a lie it could not become true, Kalaignar said. To substantiate the situation, according to reports in dailies in the last three years there were 3,525 murders, 1,352 thefts, 1,023 wayside robberies and 1,120 chain snatchings.
Kalaignar cited the words of Mahatma Gandhi ‘Only on the day when a woman wearing jewels all over her body could freely walk alone in midnight without any danger that it means India has attained true independence”. It was 67 years since India became independent. But has Gandhi’s dream come true?
Even in Chennai city chain snatching incidents were reported daily. Is this the safety provided for women, Kalaignar asked. On 22.12.2012, ‘The Times of India’ published a lengthy article on rapes stating, ‘Up to September over 500 cases have been filed-9 percent increase in rape incidents in TN”. The website of the police department informed that there were 528 rape crimes from January to September 2012 as against 484 during the same period in 2011. Of these 528 incidents 75 were in Chennai. Jayalalitha has reported that in 2013 there were 923 cases of rapes. Is this the indication of reduction in such cases. But she has tried to defend saying other crimes were included under this heading by the police, thus trying to escape by blaming police department under her authority.
Kalaignar recalled the harsh remarks of Dharmapuri Sessions Court against police officers in the Dharmapuri bus burning case in which three Agricultural college girls were burnt to death.  Similarly no action has been taken against ADNMK MLA Paranjothi on the complaint of Dr Rani even after the court issued orders.
Kalaignar said on 1.1.2013, Jayalalitha announced a 13-point action plan to ensure women’s safety and prevent incidents of sexual harassment. She said steps would be taken to amend Goondas Act and set up Fast Track Mahila Courts in each district to investigate sexual assault cases in the state. Efforts would be taken to bring sexual assault cases under the purview of Goondas Act as such incidents have the potential to disturb peace.”The Goondas Act will be amended”.Incidents of sexual assault will be treated as a grave crime and top police officials would probe them, she said. Orders have also been issued to put in place close-circuit television (CCTV) sets in all public buildings to identify those who trouble women. Police personnel in plainclothes would be deployed at market places and women’s colleges to ensure safety of women. Besides meeting the entire medical expenses of women who suffered sexual assault, efforts would also be made for their rehabilitation, the Chief Minister said. Setting up of Women Helpline, engaging women lawyers and hearing of sexual assault cases on daily basis were some of the others measures, she said.
But what happened to this 13 point action plan? Possibly this announcement also remained only on papers as in the case of her other announcements, Kalaignar said.

“Chennai Mayor toeing the line of Jaya making empty ‘420’ announcements”

Alleging that many projects worth over Rs. 6 crore allocated from MLA constituency development fund were kept in abeyance by the Chennai Corporation authorities, DMK Treasurer and Kolathur constituency legislator Thalapathi M.K.Stalin said that the Mayor was toeing the line of Chief Minister Jayalalitha in making empty announcements and duping the people which could be termed as ‘420’ (penal code section for fraud).
Stalin inaugurated welfare projects worth Rs.1.05 crore allocated from his constituency development fund on Aug 11. Later he told reporters that three Anganwadi/nutritious meal centres were opened and Jet rodding machine and desilting machines were acquired for use by CMWSSB for clearing blocks in sewerage pipes. He gave details of other expenses for projects and works undertaken in the constituency. Though Rs. 6 crore was allotted under the fund in the last three years, works worth Rs,4.74 crore were kept in abeyance by the authorities.
On learning about the purpose of his visit, the Mayor has conducted a funny event in the name of consultation meeting. When he was the Mayor during DMK rule a subway to link Villivakkam and Kolathur was constructed at a cost of Rs.36 crore which was inaugurated by Jayalalitha two years back. Another level crossing subway was planned during DMK rule and the constuction work was held up due to the above subway works. But even after three years of assuming corporation administration they did not take any action and now the Mayor has announced that study has been undertaken.
In the last three years no flyover or subway was constructed in Chennai and just like Jayalalitha the present Mayor was also issuing empty announcements. Following her continuing to release over a hundred announcements under rule110 in the Assembly and stopping with it, the mayor issuing empty announcements and duping the people could be termed as’420.
Neither the regime not the corporation administration took up any work. With a scheme they were not utilising MLA constituency development fund about which also we could not raise in the Assembly and hence we are contemplating about taking the issue to the court. Very soon we would take action for that, Stalin said.
Former Mayor M.Subaramanian, district DMK in-charge R.D.Sekhar, ex-MLAs P.Ranganathan and P.K.Sekarbabu and other DMK functionaries participated.

“Katju will be sued if he persists with defamatory statements”

Two days after Press Council chairman and retired Supreme Court judge Markandey Katju raised some questions in personal criticism of DMK President Kalaignar, the DMK Organising Secretary R.S.Bharathi has strongly condemned Katju’s remarks and warned him of legal action if he persisted with personal attacks and making defamatory statements about Kalaignar. He has also demanded an unconditional apology from Katju. “You are also warned of legal action if you persist with the repeated personal attacks and defamatory statements against Kalaignar,” DMK Organizing Secretary RS Bharathi said in a statement.
Bharathi asked Katju whether he has even an iota of capacity to raise such questions. Having retired as judge of the Supreme Court and now holding the exalted position of safeguarding the freedom of the Press and its credibility, could he indulge in personal attacks with mudslinging discriminating people on the basis of Varnasrama dharma, he asked.
Kalaignar did not want to join issue with Katju because of the high offices held by him. But it was shameful that such a lowly man had occupied such high offices. Even after clean replies were given to the charges levelled by him, his persistence with personal attacks on Kalaignar could not be permitted as it was motivated.
Reacting to his demand, Bharathi raised questions about the value of assets owned by Katju and his close relatives, his wife, daughter, son-in-law and his uncle. “What was your asset when you were a judge? What are your assets now?” he asked. The DMK organizing secretary said the party can’t allow personal attacks against Kalaignar even after his explanation. “Our leader’s children are in public life. They’ve paid income tax as good citizens,” Bharathi said.
Bharathi has raised counter questions regarding Katju’s assets and asked for Katju to declare his property details. The party also condemned Katju for ‘selectively’ and ‘personally’ targeting the former Chief Minister.
Bharathi has unleashed explosive allegations against Katju in his statement.
1) You have not yet attempted to reply to various allegations against you when you were the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court.
2) You could not till date reply to the allegations of casteist oppression and sexual offences.
3) What was the account of your assets when you were a judge?
4) What was the account of your assets now when you are the Chairman of the Press Council?
5) What was the value of assets of your grandfather Kailashnath Katju?
6) What was the value of assets of your father S.N.Katju?
7) What is the value of assets of your wife Rupa?
8) What is the value of assets of your daughter and son-in-law?
9) What is the value of assets of your son and daughter in law?
10) What’s the value of the farm house you often visit in Chennai?
11) What is happening in your farm house? It is being said that you have purchased and presented a farm house nearby for another woman! Is it true that that woman is behind your statements?
12) When you went to New Delhi court, it is said that you took a woman from Chennai and allowed her to stay with you for two months purportedly for other reasons! Who has borne those expenses? Is it that political force to the tunes of which you are dancing?
Moreover, what were the properties of your uncle P.N.Katju before he took over as Allahabad High Court Chief Justice? Now how did the properties of for your family, and the family properties of your uncle and your relative and former wife of Sasi Tharoon come? Such questions are put forth before you, Bharathi said seeking his response.

Women’s Forum condemns Jaya’s claims

The All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA) has taken exception to the claims of Chief Minister Jayalalitha that crimes against women had come down in Tamil Nadu and that women had become courageous to file complaints in police stations and condemned her statement in the Assembly in her reply to the debate on demands of grants for Home department. 
In a statement issued by the Association’s State President N. Amitham and General Secretary P. Suganthi, they said the contention of the Chief Minister that ‘just because more cases of violence against women had been registered in police stations this year it did not imply that violence against women had increased. But it only showed that women had become courageous to go to police station and lodge complaints’ was not acceptable. Because, even if many women go to police stations and lodge complaints they were not immediately registered. Only after women’s oraganisations agitate cases were registered. Hence the reason told by the CM was not correct.
Moreover, as women were dragged for days by the police for registering complaints and due to the delay in getting justice, all affected women did not go to police stations for lodge complaints. Hence more that the question of increase or decrease in crimes what had to be seen was whether the culprits were properly tried and convicted.
It was in the same week of Nirupaya rape case in New Delhi was registered that in Tuticorin district a school girl Punitha was raped and murdered. When the accused in Nirupaya case were tried and convicted within 9 months, the case of Punitha has just now come to the court for trial due to the delay in the appointment of a government lawyer for prosecution. Who was responsible for this, they asked blaming the regime.
They said as the police had not yet filed charge-sheet even after 115 days of 6-year old girl kidnapped and raped in Ennore on March 22 this year, the accused came out on bail and threatening the affected family. Thus there were instances in various cases the accused utilising the delay in filing charge-sheet came out on bail and were threatening the affected family. This facilitated the accused to escape conviction. Who was responsible for this, they asked.
A police inspector N.Seeenibabu concealed his first marriage and besides marrying a 22 year old woman by force, he was also harassing her. Though the offence was found out in the preliminary enquiry itself, as no departmental action was taken the concerned inspector was issuing threats of murder to the woman to withdraw the complaint. If the police personnel themselves were indulging in such offences, then who would protect affected women and what was there to feel proud of, they asked Jayalalitha.
Referring to the CM’s statement that Visaka Committees had been set up in all government offices to prevent sexual harassment in places of work, they asked what was the step taken by the government to set up such committees in private enterprises. They said the district level local complaints committees had not been constituted in any district despite their petitions to district collectors. When so many incidents of violence were reported, the State Women’s Commission had not visited any place, they alleged.