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“We’ve Pressure From State Fin Min”: TN Govt Officials Accused Of Extorting Businesses To Increase State Govt Revenue

By
Vallavaraayan
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Tax professionals and Chartered Accountants in Tamil Nadu note that over the last one year and especially over the past three months, there has been a marked increase in the number of detentions of vehicles and goods by state government officials over zero or minor procedural lapses with lakhs of rupees imposed as fines on small businesses.

The state government officials have been imposing penalty to the tune of several lakh rupees for the release of the detained vehicles and goods.

Refusal To Understand Law

According to sources, inability of the Commercial Tax Department officials to understand basic law and refusal to accept the procedural guidelines issued by the Central and State GST authorities from time to time are putting small businessmen to harassment.

The GST law recognizes the possibility that “buyer” (one who pays for the goods) and “consignee” (one to whom the goods are delivered) can be different. It is like a person ordering a gift for a friend online where the buyer (the person one who orders and pays for the item) is different from the receiver of the item (the friend).

However, in the wisdom of the state government officials (the Roving Squad, as they are called as, in their brand new White Mahindra Scorpios), this is seen as illegal. According to them, the buyer and consignee should be the same.

Daylight Extortion

In one instance, which happened on 19 August 2022 (Friday, a public holiday in Tamil Nadu on account of Krishna Jayanthi), a vehicle from Karnataka, which was parked outside the intended destination was detained despite having the necessary documents.

The invoice raised by the supplier was also supported by another legal document, known as the E-Way Bill. The E-Way Bill is a document submitted online containing details of the seller, buyer, and consignee, etc.

However, the vehicle which was parked was detained and driver was asked to pay a penalty of ₹5 lakh for the release of the vehicle and goods. The driver, a Kannada speaking person who doesn’t understand Tamil, was given a handwritten note by the officials in Tamil stating that they have explained the provisions and violations to the driver in Tamil and that he has acknowledged the same.

In another instance on 16 August 2022, the goods were transported under the cover of a Taxable Invoice which evidences the seller’s obligation to pay the taxes on the same. But there was a failure to generate the E-Way Bill online. When the vehicle was detained by the state government’s Scorpio-equipped Roving Squad, they imposed a penalty of ₹5.60 lakhs. The penalty imposable under the GST laws for this minor lapse is only ₹10,000 as there is no tax amount being evaded, as evidenced by the invoice containing the full GST details of the seller and the buyer.

In many instances, the goods are typically detained on the last working day of the week, with an active threat of not releasing the goods or the vehicle for atleast two three days, unless the “tax amount evaded” is paid along with “penalty”.

“And all these are in addition to the ‘usual lubricants’ to smoothen the goods release process.”, a furniture store owner from Chennai who wished to remain anonymous noted.

Officials Given ‘Collection Target’ From Higher Ups In The Govt

Professionals who regularly handle all such GST litigations note that over the past few months, the Tamil Nadu Commercial Tax Department officials have been relentlessly detaining and seizing goods, sometimes including those with all proper documents, and releasing them only upon payment of penalty.

“When interacting with the department officials over this, seeking which provision of law they are invoking to impose the penalty, they are all the more happy to say that we can file an appeal. But it takes couple of months for the appeal to be disposed off. The other alternative is to go the High Court by filing a writ petition, and that takes two weeks on an average. And no businessman is having the resources or time to go through these hassles.”, a Chennai-based Chartered Accountant noted.

After continuous prodding and repeated pleading by tax professionals explaining the difficulties faced by the traders, the state government officials admitted that they have been given a “target” tax collection.

Similar feedback was received from a few other tax professionals and traders, who concur that the state officials are given instructions for revenue target, and consequently, they are resorting to seizing of many vehicles on regular basis.

“Despite proper documentation they have been imposing penalties upto 200% of the tax amount. This is not even harassment. It is just daylight extortion.”, a Chartered Accountant who wished to remain unidentified told The Commune.

“The high-handedness of the Tamil Nadu government officials and blatant disregard for the law of the land is appalling. The pressure seems to stem from the higher ups in the state commercial taxes ministry headed by P. Moorthy and finance ministry headed by PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan.”, he added.

Tax professionals note that with the complete digitization of GST compliances and almost nil face-to-face interaction, “opportunities to earn” by the state government officials have dried up in the last four years.

The state GST officials seem to have finally figured out a way to ensure their “constant source of income”, they said.

It is noteworthy to mention that Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan has been a vocal critic of the GST on the grounds that the taxation powers of the state have been reduced.

Almost a year ago, certain “tax collection efforts” by service of “Ink-Signed Tax Demand Notes” in Nagaland were in the news. Similar “tax collection” was also pretty rampant in Arunachal Pradesh, all aggravated by the financial crunch arising out of the Chinese Wuhan Coronavirus pandemic.  These were illegal tax collection by extortionists and anti-national forces, comprising of the insurgent groups like National Socialist Council of Nagaland and its various factions. Failure to pay such tax resulted in penal consequences.

Tamil Nadu government officials seem to have taken a leaf out of north-east’s book.

“The much-hyped ‘Dravidian Model’ of tax collection seems to be a model of extorting small businesses at the cost of overall development of the state. Such extortionary practices by state government officials is sure to affect the business climate in the state.”, the Chennai-based CA dealing with these litigations noted.

Inability to figure out ways to raise revenue, address leakages in sectors like electricity, and now the state government resorting to these methods shows that the Tamil Nadu Finance Ministry is completely clueless, if not lazy.

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Thousand Of Farmers To Attend Conference On Paddy Cultivation

By
The Commune
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Isha Agro movement will be conducting a conference and exhibition on paddy cultivation in Trichy on 28th August. More than 1000 farmers from all over Tamil Nadu are expected to attend the conference.

A press meet announcing this conference was organised in Vellore where Isha Agro movement field coordinator Mr Muthukumar shared, “Isha Agro movement has been conducting various workshops and conferences on natural farming for the last 15 years. As part of that, famous agricultural expert Mr Pamayan will be shedding light on the need for natural farming and the importance of traditional rice varieties at the conference in Trichy. Also, Mr Poochi Selvam will be talking about managing insect
infestations in paddy crops.”

Joining these experts will be Mr Ko Siddhar who will speak about the medicinal properties of traditional rice varieties and opportunities in the market. Mr Alangudi Perumal will be sharing methods on how to get a profitable harvest using just one fourth of a kilogram of paddy.

In addition to these topics, discussions will also range on best inputs for paddy cultivation, cost effective crop management, and natural farming methods, even for those who don’t have cattle, which will be taught by farmers who are already practicing these methods. There will also be an exhibition of traditional rice varieties and agricultural equipment.

The one-day event will be happening from 9 AM to 5 PM at the SRM Medical College grounds in Irungalur, Trichy district on 28th August. Farmers who wish to participate can call 8300093777, 9442590077 to register.

(This is an official press release from Isha Foundation. The Commune was not involved in creating this content.)

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Two Years Of Annamalai: The Man, The Mission And The Mandate

By
Sreeram JVC
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“He Came, He Saw & He Conquered” and this phrase fits into the political entry of Annamalai.

On 25th August 2020, amidst the pandemic, an IPS officer who stole the hearts of honest people in Karnataka made a dramatic entry into the political scene of Tamil Nadu. He had impeccable credentials having graduated from a premier engineering institute, completing his master’s in Business Administration from nation’s premier business school and having served the Indian Police Service for 8 years, all before his 37th birthday.

He neither comes from a political dynasty nor was a Kollywood star which were the norms to become a hot property in Tamil Nadu politics. He defied conventional wisdom and became the President of the BJP Tamil Nadu unit which envied his political rivals.

Even before he completed 365 days in politics he was parachuted to the top position since they understood that people of Tamil Nadu were craving for a politician who was personification of honesty and integrity, didn’t have the entitlement baggage and could bring a whiff of fresh breath into the political environment of the state.

He ticked all the boxes and common people’s hearts were conquered by his style of politics that has come to signify the 3 Ps – Protests, Protection, People.

As the party chief, Annamalai is aware that he is not wearing a crown of roses but a crown of thorns  as in Tamil Nadu, the road ahead is filled with pits and potholes for any national party to grow.

His success has been in galvanizing people and cadres in organizing protests against people-unfriendly policies of DMK Government and protection for his cadres against the high handedness of the ruling DMK in arresting BJP party men by foisting frivolous cases..

In all the instances where DMK foisted false cases against BJP supporters, Annamalai ensured that moral and if need be legal support was provided. Time and again he dared the DMK to touch him if they had the courage instead of going after his supporters.

Indeed, testing times are ahead for him as he needs to grow the party in one of BJP’s list of final frontiers. He would need to convert the support into votes and then into seats which is a Himalayan task ahead of him which is why I mentioned that he is wearing a crown of thorns.

Protest Politics: Giving The Dravidian Stock A Taste Of Their Own Medicine

Ever since 1972 the politics of Tamil Nadu was dominated by 2 regional parties and each of them had a unique style of functioning. DMK’s brand of politics while being in opposition had been to stage protests on a monthly basis by finding faults with the decisions taken by AIADMK and to hit the streets with their cadre.

They would also use the media to their advantage and unleash their ecosystem on the ruling party. This was a tried and tested method for 30 years when they were in opposition.

While being in power DMK would use their same media and ecosystem to their advantage to glorify their Dravidian model of governance. On the ground anger and anti-incumbency against DMK would set in early and hence AIADMK had a different modus operandi while being in opposition.

MGR never had to sit in the opposition benches and hence we could never see his style of functioning. While Jayalalitha would be silently watching the bad governance of DMK for over 50 months and spring into action hardly before election banking on the people’s anger.

She never had to indulge in roadside protest politics. Hence DMK never had to face the music of protest politics while being in power.

This was what was changed ever since Annamalai took over as the state’s President. He hit the streets from day 1 and results are there for people to see. It is by taking DMK’s trump card into his hand Annamalai is breaking the Dravidian Ecosystem brick by brick.

The Protests Of Annamalai

Here are some of the protests undertaken by Annamalai ever since he took over.

August 5, 2021: Annamalai holds one-day hunger protest over Mekedatu dam issue at Thanjavur. This was a significant move since he was protesting against the decision of BJP Government in Karnataka saying he stands for the rights of Tamizh farmers. Karnataka Congressmen protested at Bangalore against BJP Tamil Nadu and Annamalai and this exposed the double standards of Congress. Former Central Minister Dayanidhi Maran went overboard against Annamalai using abusive language and Annamalai retorted to it. From then on Maran has gone on a silent mode.

September 10, 2021: Post the lethal 2nd COVID wave Stalin’s Government imposed restrictions on Ganesh Chaturthi celebrations which affected the sentiments of majority Hindu population which promoted Annamalai to urge people to install Ganesh idols outside their homes. He asked people to send Ganesh Chaturthi wishes in the form of post cards to CM and lakhs of people sent the cards to remind the CM to wish them on the auspicious occasion.

October 7, 2021: When the government relaxed the opening of cinema halls, TASMAC wine shops and malls, the temples remain closed on weekends and that too during Navratri. He called for major protests in all the major temples across the state demanding the DMK Government to open temples in 10 days lest he would organize massive state-wide protests. DMK relented and declared to open all temples in weekends within 3 days. This was the first feather in his cap making the DMK to yield to his & people’s demands.

October 21, 2021: In a press meet the IPS officer revealed the modus operandi of the impending scam in power purchases and the nexus between EB Minister and BGR Energy. The minister was cornered and had to retract from the agreements. BGR sent bit notice seeking ₹500 crores as defamation which became a laughable stuff.

October 23, 2021: State BJP President took the DMK Government to cleaners when he revealed that the tender of Diwali sweets procurement mandates only companies with a turnover of ₹100 crores to participate for the sweet purchases by the Govt. He demanded why DMK is not buying from state owned Aavin which makes sweet products. Government withdrew the clause and Dairy Minister revealed on November 3 that Aavin made record sales of ₹83 crores during the festival period. Another instance of making DMK to mend to his demand.

December 2, 2021: In a foolish move state government decided to build 3200 acres Industrial Park at Annur near Mettupalayam in the fertile agricultural land where small farmers grow all sorts of vegetables. DMK was planning to acquire the land from small and marginal farmers. He was the only state level leader who visited 6 villages and stood with the local farmers. He demanded immediate withdrawal of the plan to build Industrial Park and within 3 days DMK silently withdrew the plan with a press note. By now the DMK was facing the heat of Annamalai’s brand of politics.

January 25, 2022: When a female student committed suicide, the state was in the boil as there were suspicions of forced conversion being the reason to push the teenage girl to take the extreme step it was Annamalai who gave a clarion call that the case must be handed over to CBI. Couple of ministers and a police officer were trying to defend the school management. He took the matter to courts and ensured
that the case was handed over to CBI. This was a humungous victory for the young leader as the national media started to take cognizance of his words and actions.

March 24, 2022: When atrocities on women were rising with the law and order becoming a matter of concern Annamalai again hit the streets at Virudhnagar condemning the DMK Govt’s lackadaisical attitude of keeping our women safe. He said “this is not the TN we are used to.” Younger women started to look at him as their Anna and the older ones started to see him as their son who has descended to
keep women safe and fight for their security.

May 4, 2022: When centuries old practice of “Pattina Pravesam”, a ritual of carrying the mutt head of Dharmapuram Adheenam in a planquin was banned by DMK Annamalai came to the forefront and said that the practice existed even before the birth of DMK ideology and demanded the Govt to lift the ban. He further exhorted  that he himself would personally carry the pontiff in the palanquin. As usual a rattled DMK relented and lifted the ban. He did keep his promise and carried the pontiff.

May 12, 2022: DMK went into a tailspin when thousands of people joined in the protest at the DMK Fortress and Temple Town of Thiruvarur against renaming of ‘Rath or Car Street’ after former CM Karunanidhi. It is worth to note that Thiruvarur is the home town of the former CM and he was elected from that constituency twice as an MLA. Stalin’s Govt had no other choice than to drop its plan.

May 31, 2022: When Modi led Central Govt reduced the prices of petrol and diesel twice in a span of 6 months the DMK govt did not reduce its share of taxes which was promised in their election manifesto leading to the fuel prices being higher in TN compared to BJP ruled states including the neighboring Pondicherry and Karnataka.

This led Annamalai to call for a massive protest which was attended by tens of thousands of people rattling DMK and its ecosystem. All these protests be it either for the protection of Farmers rights or women safety or injustice meted against Hindu temples and traditions or the price rise has struck a chord with the citizens of the state. This has also led to the fear amongst DMK and the so-called Dravidian Stocks since he has been leading the assault from the forefront.

Who Is His Enemy?

In his political journey he has clearly established DMK as his and BJP’s ideological enemy by exposing their Dravidian Model as nothing but a “Venkaya Model” (Onion Model) which exist for the welfare of one family and how their carefully nurtured ecosystem protects the Gopalapuram Family from its failure to deliver on its promises.

One advantage that Annamalai has had in his nascent political career is that Dravidian Stocks has been abusing him by using terms like Aatukutti Annamalai (Goat) and Vaathu (Duck). This is not new for Dravidian people since Karunanidhi had himself abused Perunthalaivar Kamaraj and his mother. They neither spared MGR calling him as “Koothadi” and “Malayalathan” (Actor and native of Kerala). They went overboard with Jayalalitha using even her caste identity. But the irony is that all the 3 people went to become legends in Indian politics. DMK has this extraordinary capability of identifying a leader from the enemy’s camp who would go on to become their threat. That is what they are doing now with Annamalai.

Journey Ahead

The challenges ahead for Annamalai are manifold:

1. He needs to erase the fake negative image which has been carefully curated against Modi ever since 2017 by DMK and its ecosystem which is easier said than done since day in and day out he faces a hostile media. He is in the right path of exposing the men in media who try to propagate fake narrative against PM Modi. An example for fake narrative is that local media has painted an image that Modi is trying to impose Hindi which is a very emotive subject in this part of the world. Annamalai has batted with a straight bat and emphatically conveyed that BJP TN unit and he himself stands against Hindi imposition. He hardly has 18 months to turn the negative image into a positive one which is a work in progress.

2. Another challenge for him would to build a strong alliance prior to 2024 general elections against DMK, Congress and Left parties who are ideologically poles apart from BJP. This coalition needs to carefully built to take on the might of jumbo alliance projecting the premiership of Modi. Building alliance with likeminded parties is one step but the real roadblock would be to bring on ground coordination and collaboration amongst the respective party workers. If he can achieve that then he
would have risen to greater heights.

3. It is a fact that almost every citizen of the state has gained from the welfare schemes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi but communicating this to the beneficiaries can be done only by his party workers. He needs to build an agile and robust party machinery which can take on the Dravidian Stocks on ground since exposing the failed promises of DMK Govt and articulating the benefits of Modi Sarkar to a common man should be the top priority of his team members. He has evolved the right strategy of “Illam
Selvovam: Ullam Velvom” (Go to every home and win the hearts of people). This needs to be done swiftly since it is important for the field force to meet each voter a minimum 5 to 8 times before the election to win their hearts.

4. Winning the Perception battle and setting the Right Narratives are the 2 pillars on which elections are won. Annamalai has the biggest advantage here since Congress party is now redundant in most states and the battle for 2024 looks sealed in favor of Modi. At least that is what most opinion polls and surveys say & this message must reach the nook and corner since people of Tamizh Nadu would prefer to vote for a winning alliance and historically Tamil Nadu votes unidirectional in Lok Sabha elections favoring one alliance. It is said that a week is too long in politics but this perception and narrative needs to be carefully nurtured from now.

5. Last but not the least Annamalai needs to craft a long-term vision for the state of Tamil Nadu since he has age on his side. He and his supporters must understand that he is running a marathon race and not a 100-meter sprint for the development of the state. 2024 is one thing and long-term development is an all together a different game. A quick winning stride for 2024 and at the same time an amaranthine process
for his accomplishment of his mission is the perfect recipe for Annamalai. We can safely say that in 2 years Annamalai has come a long way from a rookie politician but he has a very long way to go.

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The ‘Patriotism’ Of The Dravidian Ilk

By
Parasuram Sharma
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The conspicuous and frequent display of pictures of E.V. Ramaswamy Naicker (known as ‘Periyar’ by his followers) in the functions of Tamil Nadu state more prominently than many other patriots, projecting him as a revolutionary and freedom fighter, is nothing but a farce and completely contradictory to history.

While the manifest malevolent motive of the present rulers to manipulate and manage to create a distorted and dishonest opinion in the minds of the wide-eyed innocent masses is understandable, let us look at a few facts from the annals of recorded history that are accurate, authentic, authoritative to ascertain the ‘role’ of “dravidian ilk” during the entire freedom movement.

1. When Dr. Annie Besant came out with the proposal of Home Rule Movement, the following are the declarations of Justice Party [Original name: South Indian Liberal Federation and later popularly referred to as Justice Party and the parent organisation of all the dravidian parties]:

‘We do not want to support any scheme that will reduce the power of the British Government.’

We welcome the continuance of the British Raj for social justice. We support them. We are indebted to them’

The author of the above statements is one Pitty Thiagarajan Chetty, co-founder of the Justice Party.]

2. To spread their motto, the Justice Party started three journals, ‘Justice’ in English, ‘Andhra Prakasini’ in Telugu [Incidentally most of the office bearers and initial members essentially were of Telugu origin], and ‘Dravidan’ in Tamil. The preference of ‘Dravidan’ to ‘Tamilan’ is simply to camouflage and confuse the Tamil speaking public.

3. In 26th Feb. 1917 issue of ‘Justice’, Dr. T M Nair, another co-founder, wrote thus: “Our aim should be to maintain constant love and absolute loyalty towards the British Raj, which is doing lot of good things for us.”

4. During the visit of Montagu and Chelmsford in 1917, the representatives of SILF met them and submitted a memorandum as: “At present, India is not ripe for freedom. Majority of the people do not have political awareness. Therefore, it is better if the British continue for some more time and ensure social justice.”

5. Opposing the Rowlatt Act, Jallianwalla Bhag massacre etc., when Gandhi started ‘Non-Cooperation Movement’ they did not participate. One of the reasons for their support of the Rowlatt Act was funny; viz., most of the people who opposed it, including Tilak were Brahmins! Their interest was in acquiring a protected position in the new Legislative Councils proposed by the British as part of Montague–Chelmsford reforms, wherein landlords, zamindars and Government loyalists could get elected through special constituencies. Shockingly, Justice Party founders T M Nair and P. Theagaraya Chetty approved of the British action and the massacre at Jallianwala Bagh, as per the book Politics and Social Conflict in South India by Eugene F. Irschick.

6. In their Fourteenth Annual Conference, Justice Party, under the leadership of EVR, passed a resolution to the effect that there should be a state separate from India under the direct control of Britain.

7. When Britain sent Richard Stafford Cripps to India on a mission, EVR, WPA Soundarapandian Nadar, NR Samiappa Mudaliar, Muthiah Chettair met him on March 30, 1942 and submitted a proposal stating that they do not want complete liberty, India can continue as a self-governing unit under the suzerainty of the British, with a separate Dravida Nadu. Of course, that was not considered by the mission.

8. On July 25th, 1947, EVR ordered that Independence Day, August 15th be treated as ‘Black day’.

9. From 1940 onwards, EVR advocated for an independent Dravida Nadu free of ‘Aryan’ influence, and supported the Muslim League demand for Pakistan. EVR met with Jinnah, Ambedkar and the British to push his idea of a trifurcation of Bharat.

[P.S. Of course, to do justice and to complete the records, EVR spent some time in the Indian National Congress also and defected from it due to difference of opinion.]

We hasten to add that while being patriotic or not is one’s own prerogative and cannot be prodded, the dishonest, deceptive depiction of one as a freedom fighter to delude, dupe and defraud the people, in order to win their favour, is despicable, detestable, disgraceful and disgusting.

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NCTP South Representative Calls TN Govt’s LGBTQIA Glossary As Anti-Hindu

By
The Commune
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Gopi Shankar Madurai, the South Regional Representative of the National Council for Transgender Persons, has strongly condemned and rejected the glossary published by the Tamil Nadu Government’s glossary for addressing LGBQIA+ community.

Mr. Gopi noted that the process was done without a member of the National Council for Transgender Persons (NCTP), a statutory body constituted under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 which address the grievances of Transgender and Intersex persons, and also assists the Government in policy issues.

The Glossary by the Tamil Nadu Government has been released following the order of the Madras High Court who had referred to the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019 in their judgement.

Mr. Gopi said that the glossary released by the Tamil Nadu Government is refuting the prolonged use of regional terms for addressing the LGBTQIA+ community provided by Srishti Madurai, an organization that ze founded to address issues of intersex people.

Gopi noted that Srishti Madurai is the first organisation in Tamil Nadu, which came up with the regional terms for addressing the diverse SOGIESC (Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity and Expressions and Sex Characteristics) identities adding that the organization even published the first book on SOGIESC communities in Tamil language called “Maraikkappatta Pakkangal” which include the terms to refer to various gender variant and diverse SOGIESC identities.

“The team involved in the formation of this glossary is highly known for their Anti-Hindu and biased views of Indian indigenous heritage and traditions. It is a counter-collaborated project with the Orinam, The News Minute and Chennai Queer Chronicle. Especially Chennai Queer Chronicle has plagiarised the terminology “Paal Puthumaiyar” which was the term originally coined by me and John Marshal in 2011 at American College in Madurai.”, Gopi said in his statement.

“We have coined the term to refer to “Genderqueer” people, however, in the present glossary, it is referring to ‘queer’ people which is completely wrong. Similarly, many terminologies coined in the glossary are not approved by etymologists and linguists, whereas the terminologies which we defined in the book “Maraikkappatta Pakkangal” was formed after discussion with several etymologists and linguists. Also, many people in the community agree with the regional terminologies mentioned in that book and respect the indigenous Gods and Indian heritage and traditions. Also, the glossary mentions the term “idaipal” or “oodupal” to refer to intersex people. This is per se derogatory and does not refer to the correct meaning for “intersex people”.”, Mr. Gopi added.

The term “Pal” refers to the sex identity of a person whereas “born as intersex” refers to the sex characteristic of a person and not a sex identity.

“The right terminology is “idailingam makkal”. Even Intersex Asia has translated and published the UNHRC factsheet in different Asian languages and included regional terms, which also refers “Intersex” as “idailingam makkal”.”, Mr. Gopi further noted in his statement.

Gopi Shankar Madurai has also completely rejected the Chennai Rainbow Pride Parade as mentioned in the Tamil Nadu Government order.

“The order is stating the Chennai Rainbow Pride Parade as “Suramariyathal Pride March” in Tamil, which translates into “Self Respect Movement Pride Parade”. Stating the Chennai Rainbow Pride Parade as the “Self Respect Movement Pride Parade” or “Suramariyathal Pride March” in the Tamil language reflects Periyarist derogatory thoughts and politics which is highly offensive as it is erasing the indigenous gender variant identities.”, Mr. Gopi noted in his statement.

“The Hindu religion includes gender-specific sacred spaces and traditions. We have wonderful Koothandavar Aravan Temple worship and a lot of gender-specific sacred spaces which are thousands of years old traditions. We must respect and preserve these indigenous gender-specific sacred spaces and traditions. It is the duty of the Government of India, the State Government of Tamil Nadu and us to preserve and respect these gender-specific sacred spaces and Indian heritage and traditions.”, he said.

Mr. Gopi said that the Tamil Nadu government has intentionally collaborated with the people who are aligned with the ruling DMK’s ideology.

Speaking to The Commune, Mr. Gopi said “This should be considered an Anti-Hindu move and act. The issuance of such a Glossary by the Tamil Nadu government is the exclusion of native indigenous gender variant identities. Also, the Tamil Nadu Government has intentionally excluded the Union Government-appointed representative for Transgender and Intersex persons (South Regional Representative for National Council for Transgender Persons). This reflects a political bias and politically motivated glossary. The Tamil Nadu Government order providing Glossary for addressing the LGBTQIA+ persons is malafide.”

“I request the Honourable Judge and other concerned people to intervene and immediately stop the usage of this glossary which is destroying indigenous culture and traditions.”, Mr. Gopi concluded.

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DMK And Its Fin Min PTR Gets A Knock On The Head From Supreme Court

By
The Commune
-

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (August 23, 2022) came down heavy on DMK and its Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan for his remarks on the apex court’s intervention on the issue of electoral freebies.

Chief Justice of India (CJI) Justice NV Ramana today lashed out the DMK and the Tamil Nadu Finance Minister while hearing the plea on distribution of irrational freebies from public funds and its influence on voters.

When DMK MP P. Wilson appearing for his party sought to make his submission, CJI said, “Mr Wilson, the party you represent, I have a lot of things to say. Don’t think you are the only wise party . Don’t think we are ignoring all that is being said”.

“As CJI I cannot say anything but the way your party is behaving, the way your minister is talking, don’t think we are ignoring.”, the CJI further added.

Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan too concurred that the comments made by DMK Minister PTR are deplorable.

Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Centre, argued that nobody can question the responsibility of any party to uplift the downtrodden and take up social issues but promising freebies has become an art and could lead to devastating economic situation.

The CJI has opined that the issue of irrational electoral freebies is an important debate and much deliberation is needed on the same.

It is worth remembering that PTR in a recent interview said that the Supreme Court has no locus standi over the matter as giving freebies is a prerogative of the political parties and the legislature/executive.

“If the Centre brings a law that the states cannot give freebies, can it be said that it cannot be scrutinised judicially?”, the CJI noted.

The CJI further said that it is Supreme Court’s opinion to take up the matter and an expert panel has to be formed to brainstorm the issue of freebies announced during elections.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, who was called by the CJI to give his opinion, recommended that the Finance Commission should take up the matter.

(With inputs from LawBeat)

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16,500 Trees Planted As Part Of Green Thondamuthur

By
The Commune
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“Green Thondamuthur”, an initiative started by the Cauvery Calling movement and Thondamuthur Rotary Club planted 16,500 trees in Devarayapuram and surrounding areas. The initiative earlier had planted around 17,000 trees on that day on 3rd Aug 2022.

The initiative initially aimed to plant 1 lakh trees will now be plating 2 lakh trees owing to the enthusiastic involvement of people. The initiative also aims to plant trees in the 60 villages in the Thondamuthur area.

The initiative will help improve the ecology and increase the farmer’s income. Timber saplings like Teak, Red sanders, Malabar Neem, Mahogany and Rosewood are given free of cost to the famers.

Cauvery Calling State Field Coordinator, Mr Tamilmaran recounted the various benefits of planting trees and said, “Planting the trees results in increased soil fertility. Only if the soil is fertile, will the food produced from it be rich in nutrients. Only if we eat nutritious food we can be healthy. On the other hand, by growing timber trees a farmer’s income increases. Instead of growing a single crop, if multiple crops are grown with trees, then the crops can give a steady income and after a few years the trees give a large sum of money”.

Highlighting the ecological benefits, Mr Tamilmaran added “Growing trees is veryimportant for the environment to tackle issues like climate change and global warming. They also play a pivotal role in increasing the groundwater levels and in rejuvenating the rivers.”

Devarayapuram Panchayat president, Mrs Dhanamani Moorthy was present at the event. Also present were farmers from the region, municipal members, councilors and students.

(This is an official press release from Isha Foundation. The Commune was not involved in creating this content.)

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Mount Carmel School In Andhra Accused Of Harassing Students For Applying Tilak And Wearing Bangles

By
The Commune
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Students of Mount Carmel High School located in Kurnool district of Andhra Pradesh have accused the school management of harassing them for applying tilak/bindi on their foreheads and girls for wearing bangles.

Reportedly, the management has termed applying tilaks on forehead by boys and wearing of bangles and bindi by girls as an ‘offence’. Those sporting a tilk/bindi or wearing bangles are being fined heavily, students say.

A report by a monthly magazine named ‘Hindu Nagara’ has stated that 36 students of the school have applied for Transfer Certificates (TC) as they were being harassed by the school management.

The school management has also been accused of forcing Christian beliefs on non-Christian children by making them mandatorily undergo Bible reading classes and Christian religious prayers during morning, evening and lunch hours.  The walls of all classrooms of the said school are also painted with the image of Jesus Christ, the students say.

The school management has also been found to frequently invite foreigners to the school and making them interact with minor students. These foreigners are reportedly missionaries working for evangelical charity organizations.

Many students have reportedly stopped attending the school as they were unable to bear the harassment. However, they haven’t been able to join another school as Mount Carmel School is demanding exorbitant money from the parents for issuing TC.

Preliminary investigations by NGO watchdog Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF) has revealed that there are no Minority Educational Institutions existing in Kurnool district. According to LRPF, the school is falsely claiming to have ‘Minority Institution’ status as the RTI mentions that there are no Christian minority institutions in the district.

“It is clearly appearing that the Mount Carmel School is also violating the article 25 and 28(3) of the Indian Constitution and various provisions of the Right to Education Act, Juvenile Justice Act, and the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act.”, the LRPF has noted in its complaint to the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR).

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The History Of Madras

By
Subash Ramasubramaniam
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madras day

Chennai aka Madras celebrates its 383rd anniversary today. With limited knowledge by making visits and referencing the works of the historians of the city, I am presenting various aspects of Madras right from its origin to culture to its filmy craziness.

The works of Chennai Historians Sri Muthaiah, Sriram V and Sri KRA Narasiah have been useful in my understanding of the city.

So, why do we celebrate Aug 22 as Madras Day?

Let’s go back 400 years. British sent Thomas Roe as an emissary to Jehangir’s court and sought permission to set up a trading post. Permission was granted to set shop in Surat first. Why did they want to trade? India was rich in spices, cotton, and precious stones. They wanted to export raw materials and semi-finished goods from India and import finished goods.

Meanwhile, Dutch and British were engaged in skirmishes in Indonesia as well. The British officers in Java hit upon a plan to set shop in Coromandel coast of India as they wanted to explore an alternate, peaceful location. Captain Hippon sailed in a ship by name Globe and zeroed in on Pulicat (Pazhaverkadu). Pulicat which was under Dutch control already, successfully drove the British away. Captain Hippon landed 70 miles north and set up shop at Pettapoly in 1611.

He sought permission from Golconda Sultan and a warehouse or factory was set up in Masulipattinam too. Hold on. Just as how modern day politicians keep on extorting businessmen, the scenario was the same then too. Local Governor of Masulipattinam fleeced the British. To put it in today’s lingo, there was no Ease of Doing Business then. The English traders moved their post to Durgarayapattinam. Again, there was lot of issues there as well. They went back to Masulipattinam and to their dismay famine stuck there.

The English quest for a permanent settlement continued for 2 decades. Francis Day, a dynamic chief factor, zeroed in on Madras. He found a loyal Dubash Beri Thimappa who helped him to negotiate and strike a deal with the Venkatapati Nayak, a Nayak ruler of Wandiwash (Vandavasi) under whose control the Thondamandalam region was. He took on lease a narrow stretch of land on the northern bank of River Komaleshwaram (Cooum) bordered by sea on the east. The lease was for 2 years and revenue from trade was to be shared with the Nayak. This piece of land was south of a village by name Madarasapattinam. The Nayak laid a condition that this new settlement should be named after his father Chennappa Nayakar as Chennaippattinam.

Few called it Chennaippattinam, a few Madarasapattinam. And this deal was put down in writing and communicated by Francis Day to his boss Andrew Cogan on Aug 22, 1639. Hence, Madras Day is celebrated on Aug 22 every year.

Francis Day cited availability of Calico at 20% cheaper rates as the reason to convince Cogan to get the final nod. There is a gossip angle too. His Mistress was here and he wanted to set shop to be with her!

That narrow piece of land later was developed into Fort St George. Madras was truly the gateway to British in India. It gave them a lucky break. Not only a permanent settlement but also to many firsts including the first engineering college, Corporation, and the first regiment as well.

But Chennai’s age is not 383. Perhaps 3383 or even more.

Ptolemy and Periplus have referred to the city in their works. Ptolemy calls Mylapore by the name Mylarphon. He refers it as a prosperous port town in the eastern coast. Mylapore existed as a big trading hub then.

Moving from Greek references, we will move to the tale of St Thomas, an Apostle of Christ who is supposed to have lived in a cave in the modern day Little Mount and spread Christianity in and around the then Madras.

Moving to our own rich heritage, the present day Madras has numerous Saivite and Vaishnavite Temples dating back two millenniums. About five padal petra sthalams (temples mentioned in the sacred Saivite texts) in modern day Madras.

You have the Adhipureeshwar Temple in Tiruvottriyur where prominent Saivite Saints sang in praise of Shiva. This temple dates back to 7th century.

You have Kapaaleeshwarar in Mylapore, again an ageless wonder. Sambandar performed the miracle of bringing back Poompavai to life here. This temple originally was on the shore at the present day Santhome. The Portuguese who came in search of doubting Thomas’s relic pulverised the temple. Vijayanagar kings rebuilt the temple in the present place.

Moving further down, you have another temple in Tiruvanmiyur, again dating back to 7th century.

In the suburbs, you have the Padi temple or Tiruvallithayam, yet another glorious Saivite temple. Moving north west from there, you have Tiruvalangaadu, one of the five sabhas, where Shiva addressed Karaikkal Ammaiyar as Ammaiyar (Mother) who lived in 6th century. The temple existed even before her.

And for Vaishnavites, you have about seven Divya Desams in and around Chennai. Sriperumbudur, Tiruvellikkeni, Tiruvidanthai, Tiruneermalai, Tiruvallur, Tirunindravur and Tirukadal Mallai. All glorious ones, each one atleast 1300 years old. An inscription in Sri Parthasarathy Temple, Tiruvellikkeni dates back to 810 AD by Dantivarman, the Pallava King.

There are also so many other temples which may not figure in these 108 or 275 shrines but as rich in heritage as these. Peyazhwar was “born” in Mylapore. A temple in Koyembedu Sri Korangaleeshwarar is very ancient and this area had the Ashram where Lava and Kusha, sons of our beloved Sri Rama grew up according to a myth.

After going through the sthala puranams, inscriptions, one can conclude modern Madras is not 383 years old but more than 2 or 3 millennium old!

That’s the untold glory of our Madras!

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PTR: A Non-Performing Asset

By
Vallavaraayan
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DMK leader PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan aka PTR, who happens to be the Finance Minister of Tamil Nadu through his dynastic privilege, is known for making headlines with his bloated ego and arrogance. He is at it once again.

In a recent television debate on freebies, PTR went on a rant asking if those in the Central government are economic experts having double Ph.Ds or Nobel Prize, and whether they’ve shown any economic progress to listen to them.

As usual, the man started blowing his own trumpet saying that he was doing a better job than the Union Government.

But here is his track record.

Big Talk, Small Work

As soon as the DMK government came to power, the first thing that this ‘rockstar’ Finance Minister did was to take long-term loans from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) by issuing bonds.

According to data from the RBI, Tamil Nadu raised ₹72,500 crore during the fiscal 2021-22 through market borrowings.

Well, even if one were to give the leeway that the state was recovering from the aftermath of pandemic-induced lockdown, it is not as if the Finance Minister propelled the state towards a V-shaped recovery months later turning Tamil Nadu into a revenue surplus state.

In fact, the Tamil Nadu government has been the top borrower among States in the fiscal 2021-22 and PTR has said that he plans to borrow ₹90,116.52 in FY 2022-23.

The state’s debt has increased by over 34% in just over a year. Before PTR came to power, Tamil Nadu’s debt was ₹4.85 lakh crore. The motor-mouth Finance Minister himself has stated in Budget 2022-23 that the state is going to close 2023 year at ₹6.54 lakh crore debt.

Tamil Nadu’s borrowing last year was ₹1,08,175 crores and this year, it is expected to be ₹1,20,979 crores. The debt to GSDP ratio of Tamil Nadu was 25.84% and is projected to rise to 26.29% in 2022-23.

In May 2021, PTR in an interview had said that he would restructure debts to reduce the interest burden. When he took over as Finance Minister the state’s debt was ₹2,63,976 (₹2.63 lakh) per family. 15 months later, the burden on every family in Tamil Nadu has increased to ₹3,02,300 (₹3.02 lakh). That’s a whopping ₹38,324 increase per family.

The net public debt for the year 2021-22 was ₹88,451.23 crore which is ₹1812 crore more than the previous year. For the year, 2022-23, the net public debt is going to shoot up to ₹93,851.33 (the 2022-23 Budget speech of PTR says ₹90,116.52 crore).

Dravidian Model – TASMAC Model Of Growth

Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh, the two states which the Dravidian Stockists loath, detest and discredit, have projected a revenue surplus of ₹1,006 crore, (0.05% of the GSDP) and ₹43,124 crore (2.11% of the GSDP) respectively for 2022-23.

However, Tamil Nadu’s is projected to have a staggering revenue deficit of ₹52,781 crore (2.12% of the GSDP) according to Budget 2022-23. This has been the achievement of the much-hyped Dravidian Model.

On the other hand, 17 states following the non-Dravidian Model have outperformed Tamil Nadu when we compare the revenue deficits of 2020-21 (pandemic year) and 2021-22 (recovery year).

A bulk of the revenue for Tamil Nadu comes through liquor sales through the state-owned Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation Limited (TASMAC).

The state’s economy basically runs on liquor and both the two major Dravidian parties have to be blamed for this.

But credit should be given where due. After PTR took over, the Tamil Nadu government earned a whopping ₹36,013 crore from liquor sales in FY 2021-22, the highest ever and an increase of ₹2,201.99 crore from the previous year. For this tremendous achievement, the DMK government announced a hike of ₹500 for TASMAC employess earmarking ₹16.67 crore for the purpose.

Hail the Dravidian Model!

How ‘Free Power’ Is Coming Back To Haunt

Tamil Nadu is a power surplus state yet it owes several thousand crore rupees to power discoms which are languishing in debt.

The recent risk analysis published by RBI notes that Tamil Nadu’s TANGEDCO (Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation Limited) owed a third of the money (₹1.24 lakh crore) to be paid to power distribution companies.

A government dashboard shows Tamil Nadu as the state with the highest dues to be paid to power generation companies. Tamil Nadu has the second highest overdue of ₹21,299 crore in the country.

The RBI risk analysis report notest that Tamil Nadu, will have to shell out 5.2% of its GSDP to clear 75% of the dues to the discoms.

This is a doing of both the AIADMK and DMK in equal measures. Both the AIADMK and DMK governments have mindlessly given ‘free power’ for farmers which has been exploited through multiple connections and power theft.

The erstwhile AIADMK regime failed to increase power tariffs for domestic consumers over the years for want of votebank politics.

Realizing that the free power for farmers was being misused, the AIADMK tried to roll out metering for all connections. However, the DMK which was in opposition had strongly opposed bringing farmers under metering. It had peddled lies that metering would lead to farmers paying electricity bills who have been enjoying free power. Today, PTR is strongly batting for bringing farmers under metering and is struggling to proceed with it thanks to the myopic votebank politics done by his party.

The state is struggling to find its feet in fixing this problem. In 2021, power subsidy alone cost the state exchequer more than ₹21,300 crore or 1.1% of GSDP. As of June 2022, TANGEDCO’s debt has climbed to ₹1.40 lakh crore.

Even amidst the burgeoning debt, the MK Stalin-led DMK government has provided 1 lakh free power connections to farmers in April 2022.

Quality Of Revenue Expenditure – Gujarat Vs Tamil Nadu

While the “highly intellectual”, american-educated, Ph.D holding, former investment banker – turned- rockstar Finance Minister has extraordinary brains to compare the finances of a state with the Union Government, let us ordinary mortals having pea-sized brain compare apples with apples and oranges with oranges.

Take the case of Gujarat which shares a lot of similarities with Tamil Nadu. Gujarat has an area of 196,024 sq.km and Tamil Nadu has an area of 130,0558 sq.km. Tamil Nadu has a population of around 7 crore and Gujarat has around 6.3 crore. Both the states have a coastline and are a base for a lot of industries.

Yet, Gujarat manages a revenue surplus every year while Tamil Nadu has a revenue deficit.

Let’s take a look at the quality of revenue spending for both the states.

68% of Tamil Nadu’s revenue receipts goes towards committed expenditure items like salaries (31%), pension (17%), and interest payments (20%).

On the other hand, only 45% of Gujarat’s revenue receipts goes towards salaries (21%), pension (10%), and interest payments (15%).

In fact, Tamil Nadu has a very high Interest Payements – Revenue Receipts (IP-RR) ratio of 21% which is the second-highest in the country after Punjab.

Tamil Nadu’s budgeted capital outlay (expenditure towards creation of assets like school buildings, hospitals, and roads and bridges) for the year 2021-22 was ₹42,181 crore. However, as per the revised estimates, only ₹37,936 crore went as capital outlay, a 10% decrease from the budget estimates. The different between the budgeted and revised estimates of capital outlay for Gujarat is just 5.8%.

For a party that claims social justice as its core ideology, the DMK government has cut down the “social welfare and nutrition” budget by 34% this year. The expenditure on agriculture and health has been decreased by 2% and 12% respectively.

By adjusting the capital outlay and cutting down on crucial expenditures, the foreign-educated highly intellectual Finance Minister claims to have reduced the fiscal deficit.

A Mohammad-bin-Tughlaq At Best

Two months after coming to power, when people started demanding for the promises to be fulfilled, Palanivel Thiagarajan released a white paper in order to absolve the DMK government’s inability to fulfill the many unfulfillable promises and to shift the blame on the previous AIADMK regime. And this white paper became the premise for taxing citizens more.

The minimum fare in Metropolitan Transport Corporation (MTC) buses was increased from ₹5 to ₹10.

Property tax has been increased to the tune of 50-150%. It is pertinent to mention that the DMK in its manifesto had promised to not increase property tax.

State-owned Aavin has increased the prices of milk powder, curd, ghee, and other milk products.

Electricity fare is set to rise by 12% to 52% from September 2022 as the DMK government has proposed a tariff hike for all consumers. Tamil Nadu’s industrial power tariff is already higher than many states and this increase will make it even more expensive.

The DMK in its manifesto had promised to reduce petrol and diesel prices by ₹5 and ₹4 respectively. After much grilling, it was announced that the price of petrol would be reduced by ₹3. Nothing has been to reduce the prices of diesel and LPG cylinder. When PTR was asked in a press meet whether the government will reduce fuel prices, he retorted saying “Have we put any date on fulfilling the promise?”

That is when it ‘dawned’ on the people – none of the promises made by the DMK have any dates mentioned!

The Central government however, has reduced taxes on petrol twice so far without even announcing in their manifesto.

Tamil Nadu Gets As Good As It Gives

The oft repeated rhetoric about Tamil Nadu getting only 35 paisa for every ₹1 rupee that it contributes has been busted in this article.

In the FY 2021-2022 the tax devolution has increased by 50.2%  and grants has increased by 19% compared to the previous financial year.

PTR – A Non-Perfoming Asset For The DMK

PTR is good at two things –  self-trumpeting about his dynastic privilege and cyber-bullying those who disagree with him like a third-grade troll.

The man has no qualms in flaunting his dynastic privilege boasting about it time and again in every medium, every platform and every tweet. If one were to see any interview, press meet or even a tweet of Palanivel Thiagarajan, it would be more about him blowing his own trumpet than about the issue. Just like it happened in the India Today debate where he turned the tables saying he was doing a better job with his minions going gaga over his condescending attitude.

PTR is known for picking fights with anybody who he disagrees with. From abusing woman journalists to making personal attacks on political opponents and public personalities, the man has gained the reputation of a foul-mouthed, uncouth person unfit to be in public life. He calls anybody who admires PM Modi for his leadership as ‘cultists’ but it is PTR who is part of a cult that has to swear allegiance to one family. In fact, PTR comes from a legacy of being in servitude. His grandfather was at the servitude of the British, his father for Karunanidhi and now he is at the servitude for MK Stalin.

So, instead of covering up his non-performance with false bravado, it would do good for himself and the state if PTR disciplines his tongue and focuses on fiscal discipline.

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