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“Won’t Apologize”: BJP Leader Annamalai Takes Hounding Dravidian Stockist Journos To The Cleaners

By
The Commune
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BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai visited the Kottai Eswaran Temple in Coimbatore, the site where a gas cylinder-laden car exploded on the wee hours of the day before Deepavali (October 24, 2022) in which one Jamesa Mubin, a suspected terrorist was killed.

The incident is suspected to be a terror attack as nails and ball bearing were recovered from the spot and bomb-making chemicals were recovered from the house of Jamesa Mubin.

BJP leader Annamalai along with other senior leaders of the party and cadres participated in the Kandha Sashti Kavasam recital, the devotional hymn dedicated Lord Murugan. The Kandha Sashti Kavasam was the hymn which was slandered and denigrated by Karuppar Kootam, a YouTube channel run by rabid followers of ‘Periyar’ E.V. Ramasamy Naicker with close links with the DMK.

After visiting the temple, Annamalai addressed a press meet during which he was hounded by two Dravidian Stockist journalists – Shabbir Ahmed of The News Minute and Lakshmi Subramanian of The Week.

Both the Dravidian Stockist journalists demanded an apology from Annamalai as they alleged that he had insulted media persons by calling them as ‘monkeys’ in a recent press meet.

The Incident

Annamalai who had addressed a protest meeting against the DMK government in Cuddalore on 27 October 2022 was mobbed by media reporters despite there being no press meet arranged. Annamalai was asked to comment on the Coimbatore car explosion to which he had said “Why are you surrounding me like monkeys jumping in a tree? What did I tell you before going to lunch? Didn’t I respectfully ask you all to have lunch and go? I can’t react to comments of dogs, ghosts and liquor sellers.”.

This was made an issue by DMK and Dravidian Stockist journalists in Tamil Nadu.

Won’t Apologize, Boycott Me If You Want To: Annamalai

Referring to this incident Shabbir of Ahmed of The News Minute (TNM) and Lakshmi Subramanian of The Week hounded Annamalai demanding an apology at the Coimbatore press meet on 31 October 2022.

When TNM’s Shabbir asked if calling reporters as ‘monkeys’ was right, the BJP leader clarified that he did not call any reporter as monkey but had just asked why they were mobbing him like monkeys without giving him the space and time to talk. Shabbir then went on to add that both are the same to which Annamalai replied “In the Tamil that you know, if you think that calling someone ‘monkey’ and ‘like a monkey’ is the same, I can’t do anything about it. If I say someone walked like a tiger or clawed like a tiger, does that mean you are a tiger? If I say Shabbir Ahmed asked question like a tiger, let’s see if he bites me. These are all metaphors.”

Annamalai also called out the double standards of the Dravidian Stockist journalists pointing out to the lukewarm condemnation when DMK leader RS Bharathi had called media as “red light media”.

When Shabbir pointed that he is calling out Sun News in press meets, Annamalai retorted back asking if Sun TV and Kalaignar TV are neutral channels. He also said that he would release the profile of the said reporter from Sun News who is a DMK supporter.

“All of you are here. Pease don’t lower your standards by calling Sun TV as neutral media. It has got a fixed agenda. It is run by a party. How can you call it a news channel? You’re calling Murasoli (DMK’s mouthpiece) a neutral channel? Sun TV has got an agenda, Kalaignar TV has got an agenda, Murasoli has got an agenda. They are not neutrla channels. They belong to a political party. They all have an agenda.

Annamalai also called out Dravidian Stockist propagandists with agenda masquerading as ‘journalists’. “99% of the media are doing a truthful and honest job. We’ve our righteous anger against a few journalists. Their way of reporting is mischievous reporting.” Annamalai said.

When Lakshmi Subramanian said “We demand your apology”, Annamalai categorically refused saying “I cannot apologize. I never made a mistake. I will not apologize. It is not there in my blood. When I have not done anything wrong, why should I apologize. Beyond that, it is your choice to cover me or not. You can cover the news about me or block my news. That’s your wish. When I have not made a mistake, I won’t apologize. I leave it to your wisdom.”

Shabbir later interjects and tells Annamalai “Don’t invite press. Why is your PRO is sending messages?”.

Annamalai concluded by saying “If you think Annamalai has made a mistake, you have the complete right to boycott me. I have not made a mistake so I will not apologize. Why should I apologize when I have not made a mistake? I have a problem with agenda journalists. If you take your individual decision to boycott me, I welcome it. Thank you.”

In the video that is going viral on social media, TNM’s Shabbir Ahmed can be see standing with one leg raised coming across as disrespectful. Many on social media lashed out at Shabbir asking if he can carry the same body language in front of DMK leaders. A few also recalled the instance when Shabbir was attacked by DMK cadres in 2014.

On the other hand, Lakshmi Subramanian who can be heard demanding an apology from Annamalai shared a tweet in which she had retweeted the tweet of alleged ‘author’ Meena Kandasamy where she had referred to Annamalai as a ‘goat’, a term used by DMK and other Dravidian Stockists to derogate Annamala’s goat farming background.

People also dug out mischievous tweets of Lakshmi Subramanian in which she had indirectly implied that she wished for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s death.

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Pentecostal Church In Kerala Indulges In Preaching Through “Miracle Healing”

By
The Commune
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Even as dust is about to settle on the horrific black magic murders that shook Kerala, a Pentecostal Church in Pathanamthitta, Kerala has indulged in miracle healing. Church members assaulted media personnel who went to record the footage of the controversial “miracle” based, illegal worship.

The Elohim Gospel Global Worship Center, a Pentecostal Church operates at Santhosh Junction in Omallur Village Panchayat, Pathanamthitta. Pastor Binu Vazhamuttam, the leader of the cult church, claims that he can ‘eradicate’ evil spirits. Their main objective is to increase followers by preying on gullible Hindus and insulting Hindu religious practices.

In a video released by Janam TV, Pastor Vazhamuttam, alleged that a Hindu man took his wife to a temple to ‘suppress evil spirits’, but the man died! It also shows the pastor indulging in the usual Christian “blessings” and dramatized antics like shivering and collapse of his followers in full public view. The quack pastor of the Pentecostal church, allegedly runs several such workshops all over Kerala, and most of his ‘special’ prayer programs are suspiciously conducted at night.

High-ranking police officers who had come to prevent the controversial practices associated with Pentecostal churches as well as alleged forced conversion tactics, were stopped from doing their duty. These officers also allegedly turned a blind eye to the plight of the media personnel who were assaulted by members of the Church.

A Crime Online reporter who needed to be hospitalized said the police witnessed the attack but did nothing to help the journalists.

Congress’ leader Hibi Eden, Member of Parliament (MP) from Ernakulam district, a Christian and an alleged Hinduphobe, has participated in events organized by this cult church. Another prominent regional fraudster is KP Yohannan, the Christian ‘evangelist’ who usurped hectares of local land, with plans to sell it back to the Kerala government for the Aranmula airport. Yohannan allegedly launders black money for Communist leaders.

The Kerala High Court had earlier intervened and ordered the closing of the “worship hall” operating from a commercial facility without authorization, after having received numerous complaints from the general public. Cult members turned against the law enforcement personnel who had arrived to take legal action. The video shows the police remaining mute spectators, even as Pastor Binu’s supporters displayed signs of anger against the journalists and attacked them.

It is reported that this is the second time that police had arrived there. Earlier, criminal elements associated with the Church ripped away a High Court notice, by the Kerala police. This time around, police had gone there to paste another copy of the High Court order that was earlier illegally removed. No one was arrested even after the journalists were manhandled, attacked and their cameras snatched away in full public view. The video shows footage of church members misbehaving with the media personnel and the late intervention by the police, after the violence had already occurred.

This distinctly Christian incident is reported just a few days after reports of a similar tone of prayers in nearby Elathoor, where Mohammad Shafi, a Muslim indulged in sorcery, human sacrifice, and cannibalism. Kerala police claimed that Shafi, was not “cooperating” with the investigations.

The same police force had thrashed thousands of Hindu devotees during the Sabarimala protests a few years ago, citing a much debated Supreme Court order regarding an age-old tradition of non-entry for women of a certain age group, into the famous Ayyappa Temple in Sabarimala.

Leftist and Dravidian Stockist propaganda portals like The News Minute who were quick to pounce on the recent incident of black magic attributed to a Hindu family in Kerala, appear to be slow to report on similar instances within the Christian or Muslim communities in Kerala and elsewhere.

Pentecostalism: A Fundamentalist Christian Cult

Pentecostalism is not a church in itself, but a movement that includes many different churches. It is also a movement of renewal or revival within other Christian denominations, with a significant part of its objective being, Conversions. The worldwide Pentecostal church movement is a financially strong one, allowing it to grow at a fast pace and continue to indulge in conversions as it cleverly “encourages” believers to “tithe” or formally donate a minimum of 10% of their income, directly to their church.

It’s not always easy to see if a church is Pentecostal because many Pentecostal denominations don’t include the word ‘Pentecostal’ in their name. Although Pentecostalist Christianity claims to be rooted in a believer’s experiential beliefs in God rather than theology, Pentecostals base their theology firmly on the text of the Bible which they believe to be the literal word of God and totally without any error at all, even in the face of little to no evidence, for many of the Bible’s alleged events and miracles.

Its members believe they are driven by the “power of God” moving within them. They engage in loud, raucous singing, shouting out of alleged “blessings”, often accompanied by dramatic accounts of “miracle” healings and emotional, tearful outbursts of believers, often seen swaying to music, as if in a trance. The Pentecostals preach that the “born again” convert and believer, will be “filled with the spirit of God” . and that the alleged “direct experience of God” will result in miracles and supernatural gifts, such as speaking in tongues, prophecy and healing.

The Pentecostal movement within Chritianity is reputed among the fastest growing Christian sects and involves questionable conversion practices. It has been reported that Pentecostalism grew very strongly during the last three decades of the twentieth century and Pentecostals currently make up more than 10% of all Christians (some writers suggest the number is higher).

A BBC reports states “Pentecostalism is particularly strong in the developing world where it poses a serious challenge to other, more established, denominations”. India should take note of it, as it is a part of the “developjng world”. This observation was included in an article titled “A profile of Pentecostal Christianity, its history and increasing popularity, and Pentecostalist worshippers’ customs of speaking in tongues, prayer cloths, healing by laying on of hands and rarely serpent handling”, in which the controversial subject of snake-handling by over-enthusiastic believers, was mentioned.

It is alleged that Pentecostal churches in India and elsewhere indulge in “miracle” based preaching and practice, including a fundamentalist interpretation of the events mentioned in the Bible, such as miracle healings, imagination of believers in extraordinary God-enabled happenings, claims of the holy “spirit” enabling people to speak in many “tongues”, among others . In the West, the Pentacostal denomination of Christianity and its missionaries have been accused of many scandalous findings including sexual misconduct and financial mismanagement. In India, the practices of many churches have not been questioned by the politicians or courts, citing India’s “Secularism”.

(With inputs from Hindu Post and Janam TV)

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TN Congress Leader Condemns Annamalai For Targeting Christian Missionaries, Says They Are Only Engaged In Service

By
The Commune
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Tamil Nadu Congress General Secretary Lakshmi Ramachandran has asked public intellectuals, political analysts and politcal parties to rally up against BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai for his targetting of Christian Missionaries.

In a series of tweets, the Congress leader said that ‘religious conversion was controversial and much talked about’ back in the day and that nowadays Christian Missionaries are mostly engaged only in educational, medical, old age care and such service.

“Fake religious propagandists exist in all religions. Fake religious propagandists who engage in many activities like hoarding black money, doing illegal activities, doing business with religion, exploiting people’s ignorance and cheating are there in Christianity, Islam and Hindu religions.”, she said.

The Congress leader added that Annamalai’s continuous attacks on Christian missionaries and Christians can develop hatred and resentment.

Congress leader Lakshmi Ramachandran’s comments come in light of recent remarks made by BJP Tamil Nadu President Annamalai in an interview where he said that Tamil Nadu ADGP (Intelligence) Davidson Devasirvatham has links with Christian missionaries and is working with an agenda to promote his religion in south Tamil Nadu.

Annamalai said that  after the DMK government came to power, an agenda has been given to fill posts of Deputy Superintendent of Police and above ranks with a particular community.

Earlier ahead of the Deepavali festival, he had mentioned about how Christian missionaries are targetting Hindu culture and festivals like Deepavali by lobbying against crackers.

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TN BJP President Annamalai Lashes Out At DGP Sylendra Babu For Being DMK’s Mouthpiece

By
The Commune
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In a strong rebuttal BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai released a 10-page statement in which he lashed out at the Tamil Nadu Directora General of Police Sylendra Babu, for going above and beyond the law to protect DMK government.

“As a former Indian Police Service officer and current State President of the Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party, I am obliged to respond with the certainty that the press release issued by Tamil Nadu police on October 30th was issued with the approval of Mr. Shailendra Babu, DGP of Tamil Nadu Police.”, he started his press release.

He continued,”A press release issued by Tamil Nadu Police DGP Mr. Sailendra Babu has made it clear that he had never seen the following parts of the report issued by a separate unit of the police. This report includes explanations for these aspects. The press release from police headquarters begins by saying that I have been making comments and trying to divert the course of the inquiry. As constructive opposition, we feel it is our responsibility to question the ruling government and bring the truth to the people. The police have no power to stop it. ”

Reminding DGP Shailendra Babu that he is a police officer, not a dictator, Tamil Nadu BJP President listed out the comments he made as a leader of the opposition party about the case during the investigation. They are:

  1. A car cylinder exploded in the Ukkadam area of Coimbatore early on October 23rd, killing one person. I had posted about this on the afternoon of the 23rd and appreciated that the police immediately launched a serious investigation. And I insisted that the police remove the mystery surrounding this “explosion”.
  2. On the night of the 23rd, I stated that the accident was not a cylinder explosion and that the person who carried it out had ties to the terrorist organization ISIS. Can the Tamilnadu police and government deny this?
  3. There was no information from the police or the Tamil Nadu government, so I asked why the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, even after 36 hours, refuses to speak about the blast incident in Coimbatore on the night of the 24th. It has been 7 days since this incident, and the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has remained silent. The ‘Liquor’ Minister, who has nothing to do with this department, recently spoke to the press about the Coimbatore suicide bombing. What does he, who only knows how to corrupt, have to do with the Home Ministry?
  4. As the Tamil Nadu Government and Tamil Nadu Police are silent, we as a constructive opposition raised some questions through news media. Those questions are as follows:
  • Why are the police, who claim to be investigating by forming six special forces, so hesitant to reveal the next level of information?
  • Why the reluctance to call it a terrorist act till now? (The strange thing is that the incident was not mentioned as a suicide attack or a terrorist conspiracy in the press report you gave yesterday. The Tamil Nadu police have only recently progressed from a cylinder blast to a bomb blast. It may take several months before this is referred to as a terrorist or suicide attack.)
  • On October 21, we mentioned about Jamesha Mubeen’s WhatsApp status. Can the police deny this?
  • We pointed out that the deceased Jamesha Mubeen, as well as all those arrested, had ties to the terrorist organization ISIS. Can the police refuse this?
  • We had raised the question as to why the UAPA Act did not apply to the 5 arrested persons.
  • We questioned why you, who broadcast news on Gopalapura family televisions with a case section even when opposition parties are the victims of political vandalism, did not mention the case sections against 5 people arrested in a terrorist incident. (Exactly 3 hours after raising this question, the District Commissioner of Coimbatore met the media and said that the sections of the case registered in the investigation had been changed and the UAPA Act had been invoked. From this, it is not clear how the police under your leadership is working.)
  • I questioned the activities of the Tamil Nadu Intelligence Service and the purpose of the Intelligence Service which works only for one section of people.
  • I questioned the government’s motive for secretly arresting the terrorists in Erode and Salem and not publishing news about it.
  • We have registered our condemnation that the interview given by the Tamil Nadu DGP on the day of the suicide attack made it look like an ordinary accident.
  • We asked the Tamil Nadu government why it has been delaying for 15 months without granting the NIA permission to open a police station in Chennai.

He also questioned why the TN government was in deep slumber despite receiving a specific warning from the Centre’s intelligence agencies, as well as why the police did not follow the warning to track down Jamesha Mubeen, who was involved in a terrorist conspiracy.

He stated, “In a press release issued yesterday, the Tamil Nadu police chief made the childish claim that the Union Home Ministry issued a general circular to all states on the 18th and that there was no specific warning about the Coimbatore attack. They also stated that they received the circular dated the 18th on the 21st and that action was taken as a result. This is a lie. We have evidence that the circular from the Union Home Ministry reached the Tamil Nadu Police Department before the 21st.”

“Would you deny that the report shared by the Police Headquarters on the 21st mentioned that no untoward incident should occur and that adequate measures should be taken?” he added.

Questioning about the secret documents of Central agencies leaked by the DMK Spokesperson Rajiv Gandhi, he asked,”How did the Central government document mentioned as “Secret” reached the DMK spokesperson? Was this given to him by the police chief or by government officials? Such actions are an attempt to divert the terrorist attack. Let’s wait and see what action you are going to take on this.”

He also stated that information about suicide bomber Jamesha Mubin was provided to the police chief and intelligence by a separate unit within the police and that his name appeared in the 89th position on a list of 96 people in Tamil Nadu who are associated with the ISIS organization.

He also claimed that the Intelligence Officer for Coimbatore was not appointed until there were attacks on BJP workers and supporters and that the ADGP Intelligence Mr. Davidson Dewasirwadham and DGP Mr. Shailendra Babu were responsible for last week’s suicide attack.

He also questioned Sylendra Babu on why Peroz Ismail, who was arrested in this case and has ties to ISIS, escaped the Tamil Nadu intelligence ring and why no action was taken against DMK member “Isai” for deliberately spreading fake news on social media that the Hon’ble Governor was responsible for the Coimbatore bomb blast.

He concluded the press statement by taking a dig saying, “The Tamil Nadu police press release would have been much better if you had included “Long live Kalaignar, Thalapathy Stalin, and Udhayanithi Stalin” at the end. On behalf of the people of Tamil Nadu, I request that you take immediate and uncompromising action to ensure that such terrorist incidents do not occur again in Tamil Nadu.”

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When DMK Ministers Stood By And Watched A Dying Policeman Desperately Crying For Help

By
The Commune
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A 2010 news report and video clip showing gruesome footage of a dying policeman crying for help, while DMK ministers watched on, doing absolutely nothing is making the rounds again on Twitter, more than 12 years later.

Netizens are expressing shock at extremely disturbing footage from Tamil Nadu, involving a dying policeman in January 2010. The policeman who was lying on the road, critically injured, profusely bleeding and crying out for help, was not offered assistance by two DMK ministers and their convoys which included policemen and an IAS officer.

Bystanders reported that they chose to do absolutely nothing for a while. The IAS officer reacted a little too late, calling for an ambulance but the policeman died of his severe injuries, not having received timely medical help.

This incident was widely reported at the time (2010) and attracted a nation wide outpouring of emotions at the DMK government in power, expressing outrage and disgust.

Netizens are once again expressing their emotions and reminding the people of TN, of the behaviour and apathy that one expect from the DMK.

Here are the details of the incident, as reported in Jan. 2010.

A case of shocking indifference and negligence came to light on January 8, 2010 when a sub-inspector of police in Tirunelveli district of southern Tamil Nadu bled to death after gangsters cut off his legs.

His cry for help went in vain even after Tamil Nadu DMK Government’s Health Minister MRK Paneerselvam and Youth and Sports Development Minister T P M Mohideen Khan, travelling in a convoy, saw the bleeding policeman, R Vetrivel, crying out for help.

The convoy came to a halt but neither of the ministers stepped out of their cars. The ministers’ convoy stopped but chose not to provide the desperately needed assistance, until it was too late. Bureaucrats were present as part of the ministers convoy – a Collector and a Health Secretary. The Collector, M Jayaraman, got out of his car after dithering for eight minutes. Nobody offered to take the wounded sub inspector to hospital. Finally, the Collector phoned for an ambulance, which arrived too late. It was reported by bystanders, that the policeman was placed in one of the cars (the ministers still didn’t offer theirs) but he died en route to the hospital.

The unfortunate policeman, R. Vetrivel was a member of the Special Task Force that gunned down the forest brigand Veerappan in 2004. He lay in a pool of blood with his leg severed and begged for help after the attack at Alwarkuruchi, shortly before the ministerial convoy was to pass by. The policeman who died en-route to the hospital, was attacked with home-made bombs and his legs were brutally hacked by gangsters. It was later reported that it was a sad case of mistaken identity.

The video was shot by a free lance cameraperson covering the ministers’ visit.

The nationwide outrage over the incident back in 2010 seems to have had little effect on the two DMK minsiters, accused of negligence and lack of sympathy, as they watched a policeman bleed to death.

The ministers opted to stay away from the policeman’s last rites, which were held at his hometown of Sankaran Kovil. A DSP was deputed to make an appearence for Sub Inspector Vetrivel’s last rites and lay a wreath on his body. R. Vetrival left behind, a wife and two children.

Many reader reactions to the shocking incident from the time (2010) sound similar to the outrage being expressed now by citizens, after the video has re-surfaced on Twitter.

Here are reader comments from 2010:

“They should be stripped off their portfolio’s, and their MLA seat should be taken away.They should be barred from any elections and put into jail. Coz its criminal of what they did in a democracy. They are for the people and not people for them. If they don’t understand democracy they have no right to be in those posts.”

“Ministers and the cop standing had cars to transport him to hospitals. They should be prosecuted for causing death with negligence.”

TPM Mohideen Khan was elected four times from Palayankottain constituency holding on to his MLA seat from 2001 to 2021.

MRK Panneerselvam is today an elected MLA from Kurinjipadi constituency and is also the Tamil Nadu Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare.

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Police Officer Assaulted On Road By Gang In Salem, Nabbed Based On CCTV Visuals

By
The Commune
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CCTV footage of a gang of five members assaulting a police officer on the open road has gone viral on social media, drawing public criticism about the state’s ability to maintain law and order.

Ashok, a constable at the Astampatti police station in Salem, was on his bike traveling near Chinna Tirupati dressed in Mufti. He noticed three people speeding on a motorcycle and inquired as to why they were speeding. Enraged, the three men and others assaulted Ashok in the open road.

Ashok, who was severely injured, was taken to Salem Government hospital for treatment by local residents. He was later taken to Coimbatore Ganga Hospital for further treatment.

The Astampatti Police Department has filed an FIR in connection with the case and conducted a preliminary investigation. The accused were identified as Abdul Rehman, Rihan Baasha, Aslam Ali, and Rizwan based on CCTV footage. All four were apprehended and later lodged in the Salem jail under judicial custody.

The assault on a police officer has sparked public outrage, with many questioning the state’s law and order situation.

(with inputs from Polimer News)

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TN Police Intel Head Davidson Has Links With Christian Missionary Groups And Working For Promoting One Religion, BJP Leader Annamalai Says

By
The Commune
-

In an interview to senior journalist Rangaraj Pandey, Tamil Nadu BJP President K. Annamalai alleged that Additional Director General of Police (Intelligence) Davidson Devasirvatham has close links with Christian Missionary groups and is working with an agenda of promoting a particular religion in the southern part of the state.

Annamalai said that after the DMK government came to power, an agenda has been given to fill posts of Deputy Superintendent of Police and above ranks with a particular community.

“The chief of the intelligence department, ADGP, who goes by the name you mentioned.. he has got a single point agenda to promote something in south Tamil Nadu. He clearly has links with missionary groups. He wants such officers in sensitive posts and is handpicking them. They are the ones being placed in power. Be it the Thanjavur Lavanya suicide, or the incident exposed by CNN News 18 where Bible was distributed to children in schools, all of this is an operation run by the Tamil Nadu [police] intelligence department. I am making an open observation. Let them deny it.” Annamalai said.

When asked if such statements won’t cause divisive mindset among the police force, he said that no Christian will take it wrongly when missionary activities are called out.

“If someone sitting in power works for promoting one’s own religion keeping that as the single point agenda, and is adamant about it, then it is problematic and I am going to call them out openly. I have no fear.”, the BJP Tamil Nadu chief said.

He also cited the ‘Fake Passport Scam’ in which over 200 passports are believed to have been issued from Madurai to ineligible persons during Davidson Devasirvatham’s stint as the city’s Police Commissioner.

“The High Court may have given the judgement but he cannot escape for a long time. Out of the passports issued, what is the percentage of Christian applicants? You should do a special story. If you want, I will give you the data. Is it not more than 74%?”, he said.

“Who ran the passport agency? Whose wife ran the private passport agency in Chennai? After the issue broke out, who closed that agency? Whose wife is that? Let the media find out. Why should Annamalai reveal all the information? Ask which IPS officer’s wife was that.” Annamalai said implying that it was Davidson’s wife.

Annamalai also accused Davidson Devasirvatham of destroying evidence when he was the Madurai Police Commissioner.

He also called the recent Coimbatore Blasts as a failure of state intelligence and accused the DMK government of indulging in minority appeasement politics by not calling it a terror attack despite prima facie evidence pointing towards the same.

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The Many Misdemeanors Of Gadde

By
Hasmitha Surapaneni
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As Elon Musk completed the takeover of Twitter on 28 October 2022 he immediately fired the top executives Parag Agarwal (CEO), Ned Segal (CFO) and Vijaya Gadde (Legal head).

Two among the three fired executives, Parag and Vijaya happen to be of Indian origin. Most related tweets seem to focus on Twitter’s now ex top legal expert and lawyer, Vijaya Gadde who has worked at Twitter since 2011.

Gadde was the key executive charged with overseeing Twitter’s trust and safety, legal and public policy functions. She was instrumental in making some controversial content restriction and censorship based decisions during her time at Twitter.

She had courted controversy both in the U.S and India by appearing to take decisions more aligned with the left-liberal side. She was seen internally as Twitter’s “moral authority” and the executive tasked with handling sensitive issues like harassment and dangerous speech.

She has shepherded Twitter through some of its most contentious political battles, including the decisions to remove all political advertising and to ban former U.S President Donald Trump, from the platform in the wake of the 6 January 2021 mob attack on Capitol Hill in Washington D.C, in which Trump’s Republican party supporters allegedly tried to overturn the 2020 U.S presidential results favoring the opposition Democratic party – a position that has earned her fans as well as, a large contingent of right-wing critics on Twitter.

She had convinced then-CEO Jack Dorsey not to sell political advertisements during the 2020 United States presidential election. She has spoken in defence of the decision by stating, “It wasn’t about anything other than, ‘This is the right thing to do for us as a company.’”

In India too, she had courted bad press and came under fire, when she appeared to appease the Indian left-liberal lobby.

In 2018, Gadde joined the then Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey, for meetings in India where they talked with several Dalit activists about their experiences on Twitter.

After the meeting, the activists gave Dorsey a sign that read “Smash Brahminical Patriarchy,” which he was later photographed holding. The photograph attracted controversy, with some critics calling the sentiment discriminatory against Brahmins while others deemed it an appropriate response to caste- and gender-based oppression in India. She appeared to have spent time and was photographed with a group of left-liberal women including the journalist, Burkha Dutt and the offensive poster’s designer, Thenmozhi Soundararajan.

In November 2018, Anna MM Veticad, a Christian, had tweeted: “During Twitter CEO @jack’s visit here, he & Twitter’s Legal head @vijaya took part in a round table with some of us women journalists, activists, writers & @TwitterIndia’s @amritat to discuss the Twitter experience in India. A very insightful, no-words-minced conversation.”

In response to the above tweet from Anna, Rajiv Malhotra of The Infinity Foundation, a Hindu Advocacy group, replied thus.

Vijaya Gadde responded to the social media furore in India, with an apology in a series of tweets, “I’m very sorry for this. It’s not reflective of our views. We took a private photo with a gift just given to us – we should have been more thoughtful. Twitter strives to be an impartial platform for all. We failed to do that here & we must do better to serve our customers in India.”

 

Another questionably controversial censorship decision that has come back to bite her, is one where she decided to block certain content and temporarily suspend the Twitter handle of the U.S based newspaper, The New York Post, when the paper tweeted news regarding current U.S President Joe Biden’s son, Hunter Biden, during the time of the 2020 U.S Presidential elections. Critics claimed, the move was biased in favour of Left Liberals.

The new owner of Twitter Elon Musk, does not agree with Vijaya’s views on content restriction and censorship. He has called for Twitter to truly embrace free speech and has advocated for open-sourcing Twitter’s algorithm and removing all spam bots from the platform. Most significantly, Musk has signaled he supports vastly loosening the company’s content moderation policies, suggesting it should only remove content if it is required by law. That would be a huge shift for the company, which has spent years under Vijaya’s guidance, creating elaborate guidelines to reduce the amount of vitriolic and threatening content on its platform.

On the subject of the free speech-freedom of expression debate, Gadde herself had advocated strongly for ensuring that Twitter’s policies protect its most vulnerable users while protecting free expression — a position that is starkly at odds with Musk’s.

In 2015, Gadde had written an op-ed for the Washington Post, a paper with a Left-Liberal bias. She wrote “I’m often inspired by the vigorous debates on controversial issues that occur on Twitter, but I’ve also been seriously troubled by the plight of some of our users who are completely overwhelmed by those who are trying to silence healthy discourse in the name of free expression,.”

In the article, Gadde continues “At times, this takes the form of hateful speech in tweets directed at women or minority groups; at others, it takes the form of threats aimed to intimidate those who take a stand on issues.”

Earlier this year, Elon Musk had said that he would reverse the Twitter ban on Donald Trump that Gadde has previously imposed, although the former US president had said he won’t return to the platform. He has instead launched his own social media app called Truth Social.

Soon after the takeover, Musk made his stand clear about free speech and minimal censorship (in contrast to extensive censorship under Vijaya’s legal stewardship), by tweeting with U.S Conservatives and right wing commentators, Mike Cernovich and Saagar Enjeti (an Indian American).

On Tuesday, Musk responded to a tweet by Saagar Enjeti, the popular Indian American conservative podcast host, who shared a “Politico” story about Vijaya Gadde. She had apparently broken down in tears during a company meeting discussing Musk’s takeover of Twitter.

Musk said that suspending the Twitter account of a major news organisation for publishing a truthful story was obviously incredibly inappropriate.

Musk agreed that Vijaya Gadde’s decision to limit the spread of the New York Post’s story on Hunter Biden laptop back in 2020, over concerns that it may have been based on hacked material, was wrong. The laptop once belonging to Joe Biden’s son

The New York Post in November 2020 had published a story claiming that material found on a laptop once belonging to President Joe Biden’s son, supposedly contained salacious material about his personal life and business dealings.The laptop was later authenticated by other news organizations, though at the time, there were concerns about the authenticity and origin of the information.

As for India, Twitter’s new user-rules re: freedom of expression, may have a significant impact as Twitter has 2.36 crore users in India, making it the 3rd largest Twitter user base, after the U.S and Japan.

According to a recent official review, the Indian Government’s legal demands/orders for content blocking and takedowns issued to Twitter, comprise just 7 percent of the cumulative legal demands received by the microblogging platform in from 2012 to 2021, and are “proportional” to the expanding user base of the San Francisco-based company in the country.

This latest analysis comes even as Twitter and the Central Government are engaged in a faceoff over the increase in the number of official demands for takedowns and account blocks. Earlier this month, the social media platform had approached the Karnataka High Court challenging at least 39 such blocking orders issued by the union IT ministry.

Netizens are passionately speculating the future of Twitter. For now, Mr. Musk appears to be serious about his intention to promote free speech and minimal regulation of all human thought – social, political and everything in between. While left leaning “activists” in the US, India and elsewhere are crying foul and shedding tears for Vijaya Gadde, the Conservatives and right wing in many nations including the U.S and India, seem to be hailing the news.

The rabid leftist Dravidian Stockist online news portal, The News Minute, was quick to conjecture with the following title “Indian right wing happy as Elon Musk sacks Twitter’s Vijaya Gadde” just shows how deranged they are with Musk sacking her.

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DMK Spokie Lies About Stalin’s Lies on Thoothukudi Firings, Dravidian Stockist Journo Plays Along

By
The Commune
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Netizens exposed News 18 Tamil Nadu Editor Karthigaichelvan and DMK spokesperson Constantine Raveendran who in a debate tried to protect Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin who peddled a fake news regarding Sterlite protest firing.

On October 28, News18 Tamil Chief Editor Karthigaichelvan hosted a debate titled “Are political parties addressing the Coimbatore car blast incident responsibly?”.

While pointing out that DMK has long history of speaking irresponsibly in sensitive matter, State Spokesperson of Hindu Munnani A.T. Elangovan who participated in the debate pointed out the instance when DMK chief MK Stalin who was then the Leader of Opposition peddled fake news in a public meeting saying it was Prime Minister Narendra Modi who asked the then Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami to order firing and killing several people.

The anti-Sterlite protests instigated by fringe groups like Makkal Adhigaram and supported by political parties like the DMK reached its climax on 24 March 2018 when thousands of protestors went on a rampage leading to a break down in law and order. As the protest went out of control, the Tamil Nadu police opened fire that killed 13 people.

When Elangovan mentioned about Stalin’s lies, Constantine Raveendran became enraged and yelled, “show me the proof or I won’t allow the debate continue.”

Though Elangovan was certain of the incident in which CM MK Stalin had lied about the Thoothukudi firing, he was not given sufficient time during the debate to furnish the video proof available on public domain.

Karthigaichelvan who was expected to know of the incident of MK Stalin lying, eluded by saying that he was unaware of the incident and declined Elangovan’s request to express his opinion.

Later, Elangovan in a social media post shared the video of MK Stalin’s brazen lies about Prime Minister Narendra Modi ordering then-CM Edappadi Palanisamy to issue firing orders.

Netizens have called out News18 Tamil Nadu editor Karthigaichelvan’s bias alleging that he is trying to protect MK Stalin by acting unaware of MK Stalin’s lies.

Karthigaichelvan, who was formerly the Editor-in-Chief of Tamil mainstream news channel Puthiya Thalaimurai, has been roped in by News 18 Tamil Nadu as its Editor.

In the past, Karthigaichelvan had peddled hatred against Prime Minister Narendra Modi several times.

Back in 2015, he had shared a disparaging cartoon implying that the Union Government under Narendra Modi is being controlled by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS).

In another instance, he shared another cartoon with the caption and the “Oscar goes to Mr. Narendra Modi”. In this cartoon there are two images of PM Modi – one sporting Hindu symbols is shown angry while another image of PM Modi shows him a secular, implying that PM Modi is an ‘actor’.

Against the backdrop of PM Modi paying a courtesy visit to the late DMK patriarch Karunanidhi, Karthigaichelvan shared a cartoon by the same artist in which PM Modi is shown hitch-hiking on Karunanidhi’s wheelchair.

He had also shared a cartoon mocking Digital India with a euphoric “Hahahaha”.

Once he was called out by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman for deliberately trying to peddle anti-Modi propaganda saying that the Centre was waiving off loans taken by corporates.

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Hyderabad: FIR Registered Against Christian Family Who Had Abused Hindus For Making Rangoli On Diwali

By
The Commune
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Protests erupted outside an apartment in Hyderabad on Tuesday (25 October 2022), after a Christian family objected to their neighbouring Hindu family drawing the traditional Rangoli designs and lighting diyas in the common hallway space, in front of their own apartment.

The Christian family not only objected to the Rangoli, but also abused and threatened their Hindu neighbours. The incident took place at Archana Apartments on Golkonda Cross Road in Hyderabad’s Chikapally area.

The unsavoury incident took place on Diwali day, October 24th (Monday evening) when the Hindus drew rangoli patterns (“muggu” in Telugu ) and lit their evening Deepavali lamps, per age-old native tradition.

The Christians who live in the opposite unit, questioned the use of the common hallway space, even though the Hindu women had not infringed on the space in front of the Christian family’s apartment. It is a common and widely accepted practice in Indian apartments, to utilize a reasonable amount of space in the open, common hallway in front of one’s own apartment, to draw rangoli designs per Indian tradition.

This incidence of Christian intolerance towards a Hindu festival celebration in a metropolitan city like Hyderabad, has netizens discussing the often stated issue of christian conversations via hateful anti-Hindu indoctrination and the subsequent intolerance that converts are often observed displaying including denigration of Hindu deities and native cultural practices.

The incident gained attention and sympathy when the aggrieved Hindus uploaded a video clip on Tuesday, which clearly shows the aggression and intolerance of the Christian family. The video, which was shared on Twitter and went viral on social media, shows the Christian woman, Gona Shalini, threatening to hit the girls with a chappal for the rangoli and diyas. Her two sons are also seen and heard threatening the Hindu women with dire consequences including physical harm.

After the incident came to light, a group of Hindu organisations staged a protest at Hyderabad’s Archana Apartments, demanding action against the Christians who were objecting to a traditional celebration of Diwali . Supporters and Protesters were seen chanting “Jai Shri Ram” outside the apartment.

The protests continued till Wednesday afternoon and subsided only after the local police arrested the accused and assured the Hindus of a thorough investigation into this incident of agression and intolerence.

Another protest was held near the Chikkadpally police station (the jurisdiction of the Apartment in question), where several women protestors, said that their religious sentiments were being hurt and their rights to celebrate Diwali were infringed upon. They demanded stringent action against the Christian family.

https://twitter.com/exC_Esther/status/1585123118284435456

According to the Chikkadpally police inspector, N.Sanjay Kumar, apart from the incident on Diwali day, there had been previous issues related to the accused family’s dog as well.

Police officials registered an FIR against the family that objected to the Rangoli. The woman, Gona Shalini, her husband Gona Christopher and their sons Rajiv and Ajith, were booked under Sections 506 (Criminal intimidation) and 509 (insulting the modesty of a woman) of the Indian Penal Code. They were arrested on Wednesday October 26, two days after the incident. Protesters had earlier demanded quick action on this incident of intolerence which had clear audio visual evidence.

One of the twitter users that reached out to netizens to highlight this incident of intolerance against the traditional celebration of a Hindu festival, was Esther Dhanraj.

She is a vocal advocate for Hindu rights and defence against Christian intolerance and aggressive Christian conversion tactics including preying on individuals and families in dire hardship, preaching at hospitals, direct and indirect indoctrination at Christian educational institutions , denigration of Hindu deities and native traditions and other dubious evangelist/missionary techniques aimed at achieving annual conversion goals, that gullible non-christians are often not aware of.

Interestingly, Esther Dhanraj is an ex- converted christian and preacher, who chose to return to her native faith of Hinduism, after growing disillusioned with Christianity, which she and her family had adopted more than 25 years ago, at a time of severe hardship. She claims to understand Christian conversion tactics better than the average Indian, because her family and herself had personally experienced the methods and process. Esther Dhanraj has spoken widely on this subject and is engaged in debates on local TV channels, in addition to actively fighting conversions at grassroot levels in rural India. She also counsels Hindu families whose youngsters have either become Christian or are contemplating Christianity. Through her recently launched “Quit Christianity” movement, she works with other former Christians in bringing awareness about Christianity and conversion tactics.

(With inputs from India Today)

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