Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday (19 November) suffered his most humiliating political defeat when he announced that he is repealing the three farm laws which led to massive protests in Punjab, Haryana, and the poll-bound state of Uttar Pradesh on Guru Nanak Jayanti.
Modi said that there will be a Constitutional process for repealing all the three farm laws that will begin next month during the next session of the Parliament.
In his address to the nation on the occasion of Guru Nanak Jayanti, PM Modi said, “Today I want to tell everyone that we have decided to repeal all three farm laws as I have experienced farmers’ difficulties, challenges from very close quarters in my five decades of public life,” PM Modi said.
However, Modi made it very clear that the goal of the three farm laws which was introduced by his government was to empower farmers, especially small farmers, and appealed to the protesting farmers to end their protest.
In his speech, Modi did emphasize that his government had introduced the laws after due deliberation but could not convince all farmers that the laws were meant for their benefit. He pointed out, past governments had deliberated on these laws as well but it was the Modi government that had implemented them.
The so-called farmers have been protesting at the Delhi border since had passed the Farmer’s Produce Trade and Commerce (Promotion and Facilitation) Bill, 2020, and the Farmers (Empowerment and Protection) Agreement of Price Assurance and Farm Services Bill, 2020.
However, this u-turn is more political as it gives Captain Amrinder Singh who just formed a new political party after leaving the Congress leverage as a broker, and at the same time, farmers who are protesting will now have to end their struggle.
But this could have other implications as it would not embolden the opposition and it is quite possible that the anti-CAA protest that crippled the capital could find traction again and with the AAP government led by the opportunistic Arvind Kejriwal will give his support.
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It is not new for Tamil film heroes to resort to virtue signalling and positioning themselves politically once they taste success in the tinsel world. That is because the Tamil film industry is intertwined with the politics of the state.
While the late Dr. MGR was a once in a lifetime phenomenon, every Tom, Dick and Harry in Kollywood who has a fan base thinks that he too can become a demigod like him some day. But that just won’t happen. Superstar Rajinikanth himself realized this who virtually has no haters and is admired by people across age and communities.
But there are many actors ranging from Vijay to Vijaysethupathi who have been posturing themselves politically of late. They think that their popularity is merit enough to comment on socio-political affairs and influence the masses. This trend among Tamil film personalities has risen especially after the demise of late AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa. These political wannabes who had hitherto kept their tails tucked between their legs when the iron lady was around are now flexing their muscles.
One such actor-turned-virtue signaller is Suriya Sivakumar.
What Explains Suriya’s Grudge Against The Centre?
Suriya has been radiating wokeness for quite some time now. Since he runs a non-profit organization that finances education for underprivileged students, he started to view himself as a social justice warrior and a champion of rights.
While it is a noble gesture to finance education for poor children, there is an element of self-interest that exists because creation of a non-profit organization helps in exempting a portion of the income from taxes. Not just Suriya, all actors who makes several crores in a year create such ‘for-profit’ and ‘not-for-profit’ entities for investment or tax exemption purposes. There is nothing wrong in that.
But what seems to have made Suriya anti-Centre in the recent years is that the Modi Government has streamlined and tightened the money coming into India from foreign countries through entities registered under the Foreign Contribution and Regulation Act (FCRA). Hence, all FCRA-registered NGOs including Agaram Foundation has been dealing with more government scrutiny. This could be one reason for Suriya’s continued ill will towards the present government at Delhi.
It could also be due to the influence of his wife’s sister Nagma, the General Secretary of women’s wing of the Congress party.
Another plausible reason could be that film producer K. E. Gnanavel Raja, a relative of Suriya, has been accused of tax evasion and money laundering.
The Income Tax Department in April 2019 had raided his office premises and found that Gnanavel Raja had concealed his income. After the raid, he had filed the revised returns and admitted to various unaccounted cash payments made during financial years of 2007-08 and 2008-09. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him by the Egmore Economic Offences Court.
Gnanavel Raja was the producer for most of the movies of Suriya and Karthi. He had bankrolled two films each of Suriya and Karthi from 2006 to 2010, approximately the period for which he has been accused of tax evasion and money laundering.
Put the pieces of the puzzle together, the larger motives of Suriya’s anger would be clear.
Now, all this was being noticed by a wolf which has been salivating to satisfy its power hunger.
Enter DMK.
The Making Of A DMK Stooge
Suriya started dancing to the tunes of the DMK, just weeks after Jayalalithaa’s death. His voice against NEET gave credence to DMK’s propaganda on the exam which was politicizing the suicide of a poor girl. He used the exact terms that a DMK spokesperson would use in TV debates calling NEET and other exams as ‘Manu Needhi’ (Laws of Manu) and even went to the extent of derogating the courts for their stance. The actor also opposed the New Education Policy (NEP) saying that it tried to impose Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states and that the policy as a whole is anti-poor.
Not just him, his brother Karthi who runs the Uzhavan Foundation too has also been radiating ignorance in all glory whenever he gets the opportunity. He had issued statements against the draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) 2020 and even the farmer empowerment laws. In another subtle yet insinuating propaganda against Prime Minister Modi, Karthi in his utter flop movie Thambi (2019) took a veiled jibe at the former’s life as a tea seller.
But both the woke brothers maintained stoic silence when the AIADMK-BJP government at the State and Centre found solutions to several of Tamil Nadu’s problems. Suriya has kept his mouth shut over record number of underprivileged government school students joining medical seats through the 7.5% internal quota brought by the erstwhile AIADMK government led by Edappadi K. Palaniswami. Karthi who runs a foundation for farmers never bothered to congratulate the Central and State government over the long standing Cauvery dispute getting resolved.
Despite being from the same community, Suriya and his family did not wish well for Palaniswami despite the latter solving many of the pressing issues of Tamil Nadu, be it the Cauvery issue or NEET. But post the victory of DMK in the 2021 Assembly elections, Suriya has been all praises for MK Stalin right from his congratulatory note on taking over as CM to the recent Jai Bhim episode. ‘Why?’, one may wonder.
This is where political observers suspect a larger ploy at play with Suriya being used as a pawn of the DMK in its political game.
Project ‘Udhaya Suriya’
Political observers who follow Tamil Nadu politics can vouch that the DMK is a party that is both anti-Hindu and anti-Dalit. The DMK has been able to consolidate the religious minority votes in the state through appeasement and by slandering Hindus and Hindu religion. But with a rising Hindu consciousness in the state, the DMK is desperately trying to break from its anti-Hindu image. That is why one can see the DMK-friendly media covering Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments Minister P.K. Sekar Babu extensively.
On the other hand, the DMK is also trying to shed its anti-Dalit image by employing various theatrics. The recent episode of a Narikurava woman alleging that she was denied Annadanam at a temple, then sharing a meal with the HR&CE Minister, which finally culminated in CM Stalin’s visit to her home followed by announcement of welfare schemes for the community shows that the DMK is yet to come out of election campaign mode. Those aware of how political rhetoric works may see through the drama but to the commoner, this would seem like a revolutionary step taken by MK Stalin. The AIADMK or the BJP definitely can take a lesson or two from the DMK on rhetoric politics.
At the outset it may seem that the DMK is a friend of the downtrodden and oppressed but in reality, their hatred for Dalits equals if not trumps their hatred for Brahmins. It is to cover up their anti-Dalit history that these dramas are enacted.
But it isn’t just that. The DMK wants to expand its footprint in western Tamil Nadu where it has been weak. Now, this is where Suriya fits in the DMK’s scheme of things.
The caste equation between Vanniyars who are concentrated in the northern districts of Tamil Nadu, and the Kongu Vellala Gounders concentrated in the western part of the state, was one of the major factors for the AIADMK alliance to sweep these regions. In fact, the DMK was wiped out in all 10 constituencies of Coimbatore. The caste-cum-political alliance benefitted the AIADMK alliance in the 2021 Assembly polls that helped them bag 18 out of 24 Assembly segments in North-West Tamil Nadu which comprises of 4 Lok Sabha seats of Salem, Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, and Kallakurichi.
In areas closer to Erode and Namakkal, the alliance between Arunthathiyars (one of the most downtrodden even within the Scheduled Caste community) and the Gounders helped them clinch sizeable number of votes. If this alliance were to continue for the 2024 Assembly Elections, this region will once again overwhelmingly vote for the NDA alliance.
This caste-cum-political equation is what the DMK is trying to split by pitting the Vanniyars against Dalits and Gounders through a Gounder pawn named Suriya. The DMK will try to eat into the AIADMK’s Gounder votes while simultaneously consolidating other non-Brahmin landed castes like Mudaliars, Chettiars, Naidus, etc. This division between Vanniyars – Gounders – Arunthathiyars will result in a political field that will benefit the DMK. Atleast, that is what the DMK’s game plan seems to look like on paper.
Hence, it is in this light that one is compelled to view the mischievous distortions in the movie Jai Bhim which has spread canards against Vanniyars. It is therefore important for anti-DMK parties to exercise caution while reacting to this issue.
Suriya’s politics became evident in Soorarai Pottru itself which was again a distortion of the story of Air Deccan’s G.R. Gopinath who is a Brahmin and a capitalist. In the movie, he is shown as a follower of anti-Hindu bigot ‘Periyar’ E.V. Ramasamy Naicker and a ‘socialist’ capitalist (God knows what that means!).
The film Jai Bhim is dashed with basic tenets of the DMK all over – unwarranted Brahmin bashing, instigating violence against Hindi speakers and caste politics showing Vanniyars in negative light.
Suriya and director T.J. Gnanavel have denied allegations of maligning Vanniyars saying that the placement of the calendar with Agni motif (sacred symbol of Vanniyars) was just incidental in the course of taking creative liberty. But there are umpteen references in the movie that proves beyond doubt that the makers of the movie have deliberately used props to portray Vanniyars as villains.
His audacious reply to PMK leader Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss letter only shows that he has the full backing of the ruling DMK.
His next film with Sun Pictures titled ‘Edharkkum Thunindhavan’ which is said to reportedly based on the Pollachi sexual harassment case only makes it all the more apparent.
What Suriya has made clear through all these moves is that he is not just actor Suriya anymore but has transformed into ‘Udhaya Suriya’.
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In a telling blow to Pakistan, China, Iran, North Korea, and Myanmar, the United States on Wednesday (November 17) designated these countries of particular concern for violation of religious freedom.
‘I am designating Burma (Myanmar), the People’s Republic of China, Eritrea, Iran, the DPRK, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan as Countries of Particular Concern for having engaged in or tolerated systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom,’ US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said.
Blinken also announced that the US is going to place Algeria, Comoros, Cuba, and Nicaragua on a Special Watch List for governments that have engaged in or tolerated “severe violations of religious freedom.”
The US also designated Islamic terror groups al-Shabaab, Boko Haram, Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the Houthis, ISIS, ISIS-Greater Sahara, ISIS-West Africa, Jamaat Nasr al-Islam wal Muslimin and the Taliban as ‘Entities of Particular Concern’.
The US government which takes such actions periodically said that it will never waiver in its commitment to advocate for freedom of religion or belief for all and in every country.
Blinken said, “the challenges to religious freedom in the world today are structural, systemic, and deeply entrenched and it exists in every country,”.
He also said that, “demand sustained global commitment from all who are unwilling to accept hatred, intolerance, and persecution as the status quo. They require the international community’s urgent attention and the US will continue to press all governments to remedy the shortcomings in their laws and practices and to promote accountability for those responsible for abuses,”.
‘The United States remains committed to working with governments, civil society organisations, and members of religious communities to advance religious freedom around the world and address the plight of individuals and communities facing abuse, harassment, and discrimination on account of what they believe, or what they do not believe,” Blinken said.
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India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday (November 18) inaugurated a revamped war memorial in eastern Ladakh’s Rezang La, the legendary battlefield where Indian troops fought against overwhelming odds against a tide of the Chinese Red Army in 1962.
The memorial is dedicated to the brave Indian soldiers who laid down their lives in the Battle of Rezang La where the legend of Major Shaitan Singh Bhati, PVC (1 December 1924 – 18 November 1962) was forever enshrined in the annals of Indian Military history.
After inaugurating the memorial, the defence minister also held detailed review of the security situation with top Army commanders amid a belligerent China that refuses to ease tension at the Line of Actual Control.
As per reports, Chief of Defence Staff Gen Bipin Rawat also accompanied the Defence Minister during his Ladakh visit as Army Chief Gen MM Naravane is on a five-day visit to Israel.
The Indian Army had occupied a number of strategic mountain peaks in the Rezang La region in August last year following China’s attempt to intimidate Indian troops.
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After the failed attempt to carry out an Islamic suicide attack by Emad Al Swealmeen on Remembrance Day, the Church of England has come under fire for converting Muslim migrants to Christianity and taking advantage of the asylum system after it was revealed the Liverpool suicide bomber had converted from Islam to Christianity.
Britain Home Secretary, Priti Patel accused the Anglican Church of taking advantage of “dysfunctional’ and ‘broken’ asylum system being exploited and aiding asylum seekers to ‘game’ the immigration system by helping hundreds to convert from Islam and ‘pray to stay’ in the UK as it emerged people smugglers are using Instagram to urge migrants to follow Jesus to help them gain British citizenship,”.
However, the Church of England, in a statement said, “We are not aware of any evidence to suggest a widespread correlation between conversion to Christianity, or any other faith, and abuse of the asylum system,”.
Now MPs are demanding a formal Parliamentary probe to see if Muslims who had converted to Christianity are duping the Church of England to avoid being deported back to their majority Muslim countries that practice Sharia law.
Priti Patel would likely give evidence after it was discovered that Al Swealmeen, who had changed his name to Enzo Almeni shortly after finding Jesus, had exploited the UK’s asylum ‘merry-go-round’ and now converting from Islam to Christianity is a ‘standard practice’ among asylum seekers ‘to game the system’, a spokesman said.
Tim Loughton, a senior Tory MP on the Home Affairs Select Committee, said, “There is a worrying new development where it appears certain asylum seekers are playing the religious card to avoid deportation to certain countries. This is gaming the system and something we must look into,”.
Rev Mohammad Eghtedarian, then a clergyman at Liverpool Cathedral, admitted in 2016 that ‘plenty of people’ were lying about their intentions after it emerged that the Church of England had christened hundreds of asylum seekers under a scheme dubbed ‘pray to stay’. He said: ‘There are many people abusing the system… I’m not ashamed of saying that. But is it the person’s fault or the system’s fault? And who are they deceiving? The Home Office, me as a pastor, or God?’
Most of these migrants come from failed states like Afghanistan, Iran, Syria, Iraq, Sudan, Eritrea, and Yemen and claim they are being persecuted for being Christians.
Home Secretary Patel said, “The case in Liverpool was a complete reflection of how dysfunctional, how broken, the system has been in the past, and why I want to bring changes forward. It’s a complete merry-go-round and it’s been exploited by a whole professional legal services industry which has based itself on rights of appeal, going to the courts day in day out on legal aid at the expense of the taxpayers,”.
The Remembrance Day Islamic suicide bomber Emad Al Swealmeen was baptised in 2015 at Liverpool Cathedral but the cathedral ‘lost contact’ with him the following year and it has now emerged that the bishop who carried out his confirmation service had ‘no specific recollection’ of Al Swealmeen.
Converting to Christianity which is a dwindling religion in the UK has now become the Modes Oprandi for the likes of Al Swealmeen around 200 asylum seekers have also done the same over a four-year period.
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Former Students of the prestigious Don Bosco Matriculation Higher Secondary School, Egmore took to social media and expressed unrestrained anger against election fraud and gross mismanagement in their Past Pupils Association.
Several former students took to social media and slammed the self appointed managing committee members Sujith Tharakan, Ashwin Rajagopalan, Shadaan calling out all the irregularities in the association and demanded they ‘do the right thing’.
“The DBPPA-Egmore have failed to respond to our emails wherein we have highlighted several malpractices from elections that were not conducted, to ID cards that were not issued and threats issued to past pupils and current executive committee member.
They have failed to deny a single allegation. We can only conclude their silence is an admission of their liability and wrong doing.
We will be hereby initiating appropriate steps to ensure these wrong doings are highlighted in the appropriate forum and fresh elections are called for.”
The Commune has been following this story closely for weeks and even reached out to the Principal of Don Bosco Egmore Fr. Gerald Miranda. Squirming in discomfort he was very evasive but in conclusion said the issues were being handled by the President of the Past Pupils Association.
Fr Gerald Miranda
The Commune reached out to a former student who categorically stated that the Principal is primarily responsible for this mess. “He is the sole reason why these issues have precipitated to this level. A lot of fraud had taken place right in front of him and he has been soft pedaling on these matters ever since. Instead of taking action he has been colluding with those gone rogue in the association. He claims to be a man of principles but his only defensible position is total support of Don Bosco Past Pupils community worldwide. Period. Anything else is clearly absurd.” he pointed out.
A former student wrote in Facebook, “The DBPPA EC is now in the Denial, Anger, Depression stage. Some know heart of hearts that they are in the wrong, others are probably just biding time, but for change or reform to happen, they will sooner or later have to Accept.”
Another past pupil commented, “Arrogance and Bullying will not work…that’s the message…Simple and Straightforward”
Sources also confirmed that this is not an isolated incident. Don Bosco, Perambur is also engulfed in a similar controversy with its Past Pupils Association.
Don Bosco Egmore, boasts of an illustrious bunch of Alumni. They include winners from the recently concluded assembly elections, Udhayanidhi Stalin from Chepauk – Thiruvallikeni, Vetriyazhagan from Villivakkam and Ezhilan Naganathan from Thousand Lights.
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The Indian Navy is all set to commission the guided-missile destroyer, Visakhapatnam, and a Kalvari-class submarine, Vela, by next week that will enhance our maritime fighting capability in the face of growing Chinese machinations into the Indian Ocean region.
As per the reports, Vice Admiral Satish Namdeo Ghormade, the Vice Chief of Naval Staff, said destroyer ‘Visakhapatnam’ will be commissioned on November 21 by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh while submarine Vela will be commissioned on November 25 by Chief of the Naval Staff Admiral Karambir Singh.
“We all know that the maritime environment is a complex one and it only increases with more number of players involved. We live in a time when global and regional balances of power are shifting rapidly and the region of most rapid change is undoubtedly the Indian Ocean Region,” Vice Admiral Ghormade.
Vice Admiral Ghormade also said that as many as 39 naval ships and submarines are currently being constructed in various Indian shipyards and there is a continuous effort to ensure that the force levels grow progressively to enhance the capability of the Indian Navy to meet the emerging challenges.
“The commissioning of Visakhapatnam will reaffirm India’s presence amongst an elite group of nations with capability to design and build advanced warships,” the Vice Admiral said.
Talking about the capabilities of this ship, Vice Admiral Ghormade said this ship has much indigenous equipment in the ‘float’ and ‘move’ categories, along with many major indigenous weapons such as medium-range surface-to-air missile systems developed by Bharat Electronics Ltd, surface-to-surface missiles by Brahmos Aerospace and torpedo tubes and launchers by L&T.
“The overall indigenous content of the project is approximately 75 per cent,” he said
With regards to the submarine Vela, the fourth submarine of the Kalvari class the Admiral said, “Submarine building is a sophisticated exercise involving placing small components sequentially and logically inside the submarine as the space within is extremely constricted,”.
“Very few countries possess this ability in their industrial capacity. India has proven its capability to build our own submarines for the past 25 years,” he added.
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Sivanadiyars who are ardent worshippers of Lord Siva staged a protest in Tiruppur condemning Thirumavalavan for slandering Hindus and Hindu religion.
A few days ago, VCK chief Thirumavalavan who is also a Member of Parliament from Chidambaram, made derogatory remarks about Hinduism once again.
This has been condemned by various Hindus organizations. Meanwhile, a congregation of Sivanadiyars staged a protest in front of the Srivisweswara Swamy Temple in Tirupur, condemning Thirumavalavan for his objectionable remarks. They also chanted Thevaram, Thiruvasakam and Sivapuranam. They then lodged a complaint against Thirumavalavan with the Tirupur Police Commissioner.
“Thirumavalavan should stop abusing Hindu religion and refrain from spreading canards about Hindu worship. We have prayed chanting the Thirumurais so that Lord Siva drives some sense into Thirumavalavan”, one of the Sivanadiyars said.
As the state assembly election in India’s most populous state of the Uttar Pradesh hots up, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday (November 16) launched a scathing attack on opposition parties and said, the previous governments in Uttar Pradesh had turned the state’s vital eastern part to ‘mafiawaad’ and ‘poverty’.
Modi said that it was due to the hard work of the BJP government that a new chapter of development is being written in the state led by Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
He also said that the development under previous chief ministers was limited to only places where they had homes and families, but the present administration ensured infrastructure development reached all parts of the state and particularly the long-ignored Purvanchal region.
The Prime Minister was addressing a rally in Sultanpur after inaugurating the 341-km strategically and logistically important Purvanchal Expressway.
The expressway links the state capital Lucknow with Ghazipur and has been constructed at an estimated cost of Rs 22,500 crore.
PM said that development under previous chief ministers was limited to places where they had homes and families, but the present regime is giving fruits of developments to the eastern region as good as to the western part of Uttar Pradesh.
The PM said the six-lane expressway will now serve as the lifeline of the eastern region of UP and will yield prosperity and economic development of the region and the state.
Earlier in the day, PM Modi had landed on the Purvanchal Expressway airstrip in an IAF C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft and was received by Governor Anandiben Patel and Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath.
A 3.2-km airstrip has been constructed on the expressway to facilitate the emergency landing of fighter aircraft and heavy-lift transport planes.
A statement from the PM office reads, “The Prime Minister noted that for industrial development of Uttar Pradesh, excellent connectivity is necessary, every corner of UP needs to be connected. He said as expressways are getting ready in UP, the work of the industrial corridor has also started. Very soon new industries will start coming up around Purvanchal Expressway,”.
“In the coming days, in the cities situated along these expressways, work on products related to food processing, milk, cold storage, storage of fruits and vegetables, cereal, animal husbandry and other agricultural products are going to increase rapidly. He said skilled manpower is essential to the industrialization of UP. So work has also been started to train the manpower. ITI and other training institutes and medical institutes will also be established in these cities,” the statement said.
“He said that this expressway will connect those cities with immense aspiration and huge potential for development with Lucknow. He said where the good road leads, good highways reach, there the pace of development increases, job creation happens faster,” the statement added.
“The Prime Minister lauded the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh Shri Yogi Adityanath, his team and the people of UP on the completion of Purvanchal Expressway. He also thanked the farmers whose land was acquired for this project,” the statement added.
“The Prime Minister remarked that security of the country is equally important as the prosperity of the country. He said that keeping that in mind, emergency landing provision for fighter jets is made while constructing the Purvanchal Expressway,” the statement said.
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As the Islamic group, the Raza Acadamy which is running riot in the state of Maharastra over an unverified attack on a mosque in Tripura, a new problem of vaccine hesitancy has emerged in the state which saw maximum infection and deaths in the last one year.
Maharashtra Public Health Minister Rajesh Tope has said that there is hesitancy among the Muslim community when it comes to taking the anti-coronavirus vaccines in Muslim-dominated areas.
That is why the government has now taken the help of Bollywood superstar Salman Khan to convince people to take the jab.
As per data, Maharashtra is leading in terms of the number of vaccine shots administered, however, it has been noticed that in some areas the pace of vaccination is low and they are Muslim-dominated areas.
Tope said, “There is still some hesitancy in Muslim-dominated areas. We have decided to use Salman Khan and religious leaders to convince the Muslim community to take the vaccine. Religious leaders and film actors wield great influence and people listen to them,”.
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The Rise Of ‘Udhaya Suriya’: A DMK Project
It is not new for Tamil film heroes to resort to virtue signalling and positioning themselves politically once they taste success in the tinsel world. That is because the Tamil film industry is intertwined with the politics of the state.
While the late Dr. MGR was a once in a lifetime phenomenon, every Tom, Dick and Harry in Kollywood who has a fan base thinks that he too can become a demigod like him some day. But that just won’t happen. Superstar Rajinikanth himself realized this who virtually has no haters and is admired by people across age and communities.
But there are many actors ranging from Vijay to Vijaysethupathi who have been posturing themselves politically of late. They think that their popularity is merit enough to comment on socio-political affairs and influence the masses. This trend among Tamil film personalities has risen especially after the demise of late AIADMK supremo J. Jayalalithaa. These political wannabes who had hitherto kept their tails tucked between their legs when the iron lady was around are now flexing their muscles.
One such actor-turned-virtue signaller is Suriya Sivakumar.
What Explains Suriya’s Grudge Against The Centre?
Suriya has been radiating wokeness for quite some time now. Since he runs a non-profit organization that finances education for underprivileged students, he started to view himself as a social justice warrior and a champion of rights.
While it is a noble gesture to finance education for poor children, there is an element of self-interest that exists because creation of a non-profit organization helps in exempting a portion of the income from taxes. Not just Suriya, all actors who makes several crores in a year create such ‘for-profit’ and ‘not-for-profit’ entities for investment or tax exemption purposes. There is nothing wrong in that.
But what seems to have made Suriya anti-Centre in the recent years is that the Modi Government has streamlined and tightened the money coming into India from foreign countries through entities registered under the Foreign Contribution and Regulation Act (FCRA). Hence, all FCRA-registered NGOs including Agaram Foundation has been dealing with more government scrutiny. This could be one reason for Suriya’s continued ill will towards the present government at Delhi.
It could also be due to the influence of his wife’s sister Nagma, the General Secretary of women’s wing of the Congress party.
Another plausible reason could be that film producer K. E. Gnanavel Raja, a relative of Suriya, has been accused of tax evasion and money laundering.
The Income Tax Department in April 2019 had raided his office premises and found that Gnanavel Raja had concealed his income. After the raid, he had filed the revised returns and admitted to various unaccounted cash payments made during financial years of 2007-08 and 2008-09. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him by the Egmore Economic Offences Court.
Later in 2020, he was summoned by the Madras High Court over a ₹300 crore money laundering case which traces its origins to a chit fund scam case in which Gnanavel Raja was booked as an accused.
Now, why is Gnanavel Raja significant?
Gnanavel Raja was the producer for most of the movies of Suriya and Karthi. He had bankrolled two films each of Suriya and Karthi from 2006 to 2010, approximately the period for which he has been accused of tax evasion and money laundering.
Put the pieces of the puzzle together, the larger motives of Suriya’s anger would be clear.
Now, all this was being noticed by a wolf which has been salivating to satisfy its power hunger.
Enter DMK.
The Making Of A DMK Stooge
Suriya started dancing to the tunes of the DMK, just weeks after Jayalalithaa’s death. His voice against NEET gave credence to DMK’s propaganda on the exam which was politicizing the suicide of a poor girl. He used the exact terms that a DMK spokesperson would use in TV debates calling NEET and other exams as ‘Manu Needhi’ (Laws of Manu) and even went to the extent of derogating the courts for their stance. The actor also opposed the New Education Policy (NEP) saying that it tried to impose Hindi on non-Hindi speaking states and that the policy as a whole is anti-poor.
Not just him, his brother Karthi who runs the Uzhavan Foundation too has also been radiating ignorance in all glory whenever he gets the opportunity. He had issued statements against the draft Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) 2020 and even the farmer empowerment laws. In another subtle yet insinuating propaganda against Prime Minister Modi, Karthi in his utter flop movie Thambi (2019) took a veiled jibe at the former’s life as a tea seller.
But both the woke brothers maintained stoic silence when the AIADMK-BJP government at the State and Centre found solutions to several of Tamil Nadu’s problems. Suriya has kept his mouth shut over record number of underprivileged government school students joining medical seats through the 7.5% internal quota brought by the erstwhile AIADMK government led by Edappadi K. Palaniswami. Karthi who runs a foundation for farmers never bothered to congratulate the Central and State government over the long standing Cauvery dispute getting resolved.
Despite being from the same community, Suriya and his family did not wish well for Palaniswami despite the latter solving many of the pressing issues of Tamil Nadu, be it the Cauvery issue or NEET. But post the victory of DMK in the 2021 Assembly elections, Suriya has been all praises for MK Stalin right from his congratulatory note on taking over as CM to the recent Jai Bhim episode. ‘Why?’, one may wonder.
This is where political observers suspect a larger ploy at play with Suriya being used as a pawn of the DMK in its political game.
Project ‘Udhaya Suriya’
Political observers who follow Tamil Nadu politics can vouch that the DMK is a party that is both anti-Hindu and anti-Dalit. The DMK has been able to consolidate the religious minority votes in the state through appeasement and by slandering Hindus and Hindu religion. But with a rising Hindu consciousness in the state, the DMK is desperately trying to break from its anti-Hindu image. That is why one can see the DMK-friendly media covering Hindu Religious & Charitable Endowments Minister P.K. Sekar Babu extensively.
On the other hand, the DMK is also trying to shed its anti-Dalit image by employing various theatrics. The recent episode of a Narikurava woman alleging that she was denied Annadanam at a temple, then sharing a meal with the HR&CE Minister, which finally culminated in CM Stalin’s visit to her home followed by announcement of welfare schemes for the community shows that the DMK is yet to come out of election campaign mode. Those aware of how political rhetoric works may see through the drama but to the commoner, this would seem like a revolutionary step taken by MK Stalin. The AIADMK or the BJP definitely can take a lesson or two from the DMK on rhetoric politics.
At the outset it may seem that the DMK is a friend of the downtrodden and oppressed but in reality, their hatred for Dalits equals if not trumps their hatred for Brahmins. It is to cover up their anti-Dalit history that these dramas are enacted.
But it isn’t just that. The DMK wants to expand its footprint in western Tamil Nadu where it has been weak. Now, this is where Suriya fits in the DMK’s scheme of things.
The caste equation between Vanniyars who are concentrated in the northern districts of Tamil Nadu, and the Kongu Vellala Gounders concentrated in the western part of the state, was one of the major factors for the AIADMK alliance to sweep these regions. In fact, the DMK was wiped out in all 10 constituencies of Coimbatore. The caste-cum-political alliance benefitted the AIADMK alliance in the 2021 Assembly polls that helped them bag 18 out of 24 Assembly segments in North-West Tamil Nadu which comprises of 4 Lok Sabha seats of Salem, Dharmapuri, Krishnagiri, and Kallakurichi.
In areas closer to Erode and Namakkal, the alliance between Arunthathiyars (one of the most downtrodden even within the Scheduled Caste community) and the Gounders helped them clinch sizeable number of votes. If this alliance were to continue for the 2024 Assembly Elections, this region will once again overwhelmingly vote for the NDA alliance.
This caste-cum-political equation is what the DMK is trying to split by pitting the Vanniyars against Dalits and Gounders through a Gounder pawn named Suriya. The DMK will try to eat into the AIADMK’s Gounder votes while simultaneously consolidating other non-Brahmin landed castes like Mudaliars, Chettiars, Naidus, etc. This division between Vanniyars – Gounders – Arunthathiyars will result in a political field that will benefit the DMK. Atleast, that is what the DMK’s game plan seems to look like on paper.
Hence, it is in this light that one is compelled to view the mischievous distortions in the movie Jai Bhim which has spread canards against Vanniyars. It is therefore important for anti-DMK parties to exercise caution while reacting to this issue.
Suriya’s politics became evident in Soorarai Pottru itself which was again a distortion of the story of Air Deccan’s G.R. Gopinath who is a Brahmin and a capitalist. In the movie, he is shown as a follower of anti-Hindu bigot ‘Periyar’ E.V. Ramasamy Naicker and a ‘socialist’ capitalist (God knows what that means!).
The film Jai Bhim is dashed with basic tenets of the DMK all over – unwarranted Brahmin bashing, instigating violence against Hindi speakers and caste politics showing Vanniyars in negative light.
Suriya and director T.J. Gnanavel have denied allegations of maligning Vanniyars saying that the placement of the calendar with Agni motif (sacred symbol of Vanniyars) was just incidental in the course of taking creative liberty. But there are umpteen references in the movie that proves beyond doubt that the makers of the movie have deliberately used props to portray Vanniyars as villains.
His audacious reply to PMK leader Dr. Anbumani Ramadoss letter only shows that he has the full backing of the ruling DMK.
His next film with Sun Pictures titled ‘Edharkkum Thunindhavan’ which is said to reportedly based on the Pollachi sexual harassment case only makes it all the more apparent.
What Suriya has made clear through all these moves is that he is not just actor Suriya anymore but has transformed into ‘Udhaya Suriya’.
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