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National Commission for Women takes cognizance of one of the Loyola College sexual harassment cases

By
The Commune
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The National Commission for Women (NCW) has taken cognizance of the the plight of Josephine Jeyashanthi, a survivor of sexual harassment at Loyola College, Chennai who is fighting a lone battle against an extremely powerful clergy establishment of the institution hell bent on protecting a bunch of sexual predators.

Rekha Sharma, the Chairperson of NCW had responded to a request made by Nupur Sharma, the Editor-in-Chief of OpIndia through Twitter.

The Commune had first brought to light the issue on 11th October 2020. Josephine Jeyashanthi was sexually harassed and abused by one Dr. S. Antony Rajarajan, who was the head of the Tamil department. He had made sexually charged remarks and even made advances on her. She had lodged a sexual harassment complaint against Antony Rajarajan with the internal complaints committee in December 2012 but was intimidated by the college management for filing the complaint. The Loyola management tried to stall the enquiry against Rajarajan by not allowing the committee to proceed.  Albert Williams, the Secretary of Loyola College had asked her to withdraw the complaint. After her persistent efforts, the anti-sexual harassment committee conducted the enquiry on March 19, 2013. The committee submitted its report to the management on March 23, 2013 but has till date not provided its copy Josephine as mandated by statutes.

Josephine also had to put up with further harassment from other authorities like Father Xavier Alphonse, the former Director of Loyola Alumni Association and the main accused in the Mary Rajasekharan case.

After inaction from college management, Josephine had  had lodged a complaint with the police against Rajarajan. Immediately after this, on 28th February 2014, Josephine was terminated from her service without prior notice and no valid reason. When she confronted the college management asking for the reason of her termination, the Secretary of Loyola College Albert Williams told her that this was a ‘Christian minority institution’ and that they don’t need to give anybody any reason.

On the other hand, Antony Rajarajan who has been accused of sexual harassment was not only protected by the Loyola College management but was also given privileges like superannuation with salary while the victim was further victimised and terminated from the job.

On 25th October 2019, the Madras High Court gave an order in favour of Josephine allowing her to initiate further action against the culprits in accordance with the law. An interim order was given on 16th June 2020 that directed the Loyola College management to not give any employee/retirement benefits for Antony Rajarajan and also to provide compensation to the Josephine within 60 days. But this has not been done. Josephine has now pinned her hopes on the judiciary to get justice.

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“Cut fuel price by reducing state tax, and fulfill your poll promise; else resign from government”, Dr. Krishnasamy lashes out at DMK govt

By
The Commune
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devendrakula vellalar puthiya tamilagam chief hindu nation

Dr Krishnasamy, founder and president of the Puthiya Tamilagam party, lashed out at the DMK government in a press release on Monday (June 21), stating that if the DMK government cannot keep its promise of lowering fuel prices by lowering state taxes, they should resign.

In his statement, he said, “The rise in the price of petrol and diesel has had a significant impact on middle-class people who must travel great distances in their own vehicle. The DMK came to power on the promise of lowering fuel prices by ₹ 5 per litre of petrol and ₹ 4 per litre of diesel. However, it has been one and a half months since the DMK assumed charge, and the DMK’s reluctance to take actions to lower fuel prices has caused widespread public dissatisfaction.”

He went on to say that while the DMK was in opposition, they campaigned for a reduction in fuel prices of ₹ 25 to ₹ 30 per litre by lowering the state tax on petrol and diesel, and bringing petrol and diesel under GST.

Dr, Krishnasamy added,” The GST Council has met twice since the DMK government came to power. However, no demand was made on behalf of Tamil Nadu in those two meetings to bring fuel and diesel taxes under GST. On the contrary, Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan has been engaged in petty politics for the past 45 days, repeatedly criticising the central government on trivial issues.”

Dr Krishnasamy also criticized the Tamil Nadu Finance Minister for blaming the central government for everything during Sunday (June 20) press conference, as if the state government had no role and did not levy any taxes on fuel.

He further stated,” In addition, he shouts at journalists, asking them whether the DMK has specified a deadline in its manifesto for implementing the fuel price cut. Does this imply that they will not decrease petrol and diesel prices in the near future? or will they blame the central government for the next five years?”

He also slammed Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan for stating that the government will issue a “White Paper” on all departments. Dr Krishnasamy questioned him on whether the ‘White Paper’ can be used to purchase cheaper petrol and diesel, or if it can be used to meet all of the DMK’s election promises.

He concluded by stressing that the DMK government should resign if they fail to meet their election promises.

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Congress effectuates Greta Thunberg’s toolkit, Abhishek Manu Singhvi belittles chanting of OM and Yoga on International Yoga Day

By
The Commune
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As the whole world was celebrating the 7th International Yoga Day, Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi has posted a controversial tweet where he said, “Neither Yoga will become more powerful by chanting Om, nor will the power of Yoga be reduced by saying, Allah,”.

 

The chanting of the word OM is a significant part while performing Yoga. Soon after Singhvi’s tweet, yoga guru Baba Ramdev responded to the Congress leader and said that chanting Om doesn’t reflect any religion, and said, “God, Allah, Ishwar, Parmatma all are one. In such a situation, nobody should have a problem chanting Om as it doesn’t reflect any religion and we are not forbidding anyone from believing in God. Om is not a person or an idol.”

Swedish school dropout ‘climate activist’ Greta Thunberg who had accidentally made public a toolkit that revealed a sinister plan to run a global propaganda against India had mentioned that the image of India as the home for Yoga and Chai has to be broken. 

“Disrupt Yoga and Chai Image of India in General”, the toolkit read meaning that the she wanted people want to disrupt India’s soft power elements of yoga and tea.

On the occasion of International Yoga Day, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke on the practice of Yoga and how it has been a key strength after the country was hit by Covid-19. PM Modi began his address to the nation by wishing wellness and good health for “every country, every society, and every individual”.

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India vaccinates 1.5 times the population of New Zealand in a day

By
The Commune
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Making the critics of the India put a poker face, India on June 21 administered COVID19 vaccines for a whopping 75.43 lakh people in a single day, the highest ever daily vaccination figure.

India Achieves Highest Ever Single-Day Covid-19 Vaccination Tally: Vaccinates Over 75 Lakh People In One Day

The highest daily vaccinations have been carried out in Madhya Pradesh with 13.71 lakh vaccinations followed by Karnataka with 9.82 lakh.

Uttar Pradesh stood third with 5.84 lakh vaccinations followed by Gujarat and Haryana with 4.86 lakh and 4.5 lakh vaccinations respectively.

The five BJP ruled states vaccinated an entire New Zealand in a single day. New Zealand is being referred to as a benchmark after some critics of the government took a dig at Prime Minister Modi by comparing him with New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, a darling of the left.

The highest numbers in vaccination comes days after the Centre took over the vaccine procurement and distribution.

As per the new policy, the Central government will procure 75% of vaccines produced with the remaining 25% available for private hospitals to purchase and administer the vaccines.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated the country for achieving a record breaking milestone.

India has so far administered 28 crore vaccination doses and plans to vaccinate the entire adult population by the end of this year.

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SBI ATMs in Chennai specifically targeted and looted by mystery men

By
The Commune
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The Chennai Police are investigating CCTV footage of a gang that targeted SBI ATMs specifically and looted millions of rupees in a different manner. When the bank officials had checked the amount withdrawn by the customers in the SBI ATM in Valasaravakkam, it was found that the amount had reduced to ₹2 lakh. Similarly, ATMs in Ramapuram, Valluvar Kottam, Velachery and Tharamani had also reported similar issues. There were complaints filed to the police that there was less money in the machines as well.

Consequently, the CCTV footage on the specified day when the cash was seized was obtained to find the identity of mystery persons. During the investigation, it was revealed that the money was stolen in the same style targeting only SBI ATMs. Since it is also possible to withdraw money at a cash deposit machine, the robbers figured out that failure to withdraw the amount within 20 seconds will result in the cash going back into the machine.

They went on to open a fake bank account and kept only a small amount in it. They used this trick and used to wait for 20 seconds after the money arrived, and when the money goes back inside, they would place their fingers in the sensor area and take the money. The machine will also assume that the money was not taken, since the money was not withdrawn in 20 seconds.

Thus, the balance in the relevant bank account will not decrease. They have repeatedly robbed millions of deposit machines using this technology. They have looted ₹15 lakh rupees at the rate of 10 thousand rupees in each machine.

Japan’s OKI ATM manufacturing company was the one that manufactured these ATMs. Bank officials said in the complaint that only the machines were robbed. Following this, SBI has decided to repeal the facility of withdrawing cash at ATMs using cash deposit machines manufactured by OKI. Bank management has banned. As OKI has been providing ATM machines to many banks, all the bank officials are investigating whether fraud has taken place in their bank ATMs.

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“Rahul Gandhi loves the company of dumb people and his dog” – Former Assam Congress MLA

By
The Commune
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After Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma blasted Congress leader and scion of Gandhi family Rahul Gandhi for his indifference and blatant disregard for party affairs, another important young leader from the state Rupjyoti Kurmi has blasted Rahul Gandhi in an interview given to India Today.

In his interview, the four time Congress MLA who resigned from the party on June 18 said that Rahul Gandhi ‘loves the company of dumb people and his dog’ Pidi. He said that he resigned from the party feeling “frustrated and disillusioned” with the leadership. He said that the Congress party has no future with Rahul Gandhi at the top.

Unlike Sarma who left Congress in 2016, Kurmi had decided to stay and fight the Bhartia Janata Party (BJP) because the “Congress was in his blood”. His exit now will be a huge loss for the state leadership as he had led a sustained campaign against the BJP -led state government in the last term by raising multiple issues inside and outside the assembly.

In his interview, Kurmi said Rahul Gandhi only listens to select party leaders like K C Venugopal and K B Byju who are his political counsellors and said the “eternal youth leader” doesn’t support young leaders like Sachin Pilot or Jyotiraditya Scindia because of the fear of getting outshined by them. 

He added that Rahul Gandhi only supports those leaders who he feels do not pose a challenge to him or those who from a ‘loyal family’.

Kurmi in his interview also said that Rahul Gandhi has never responded to a single email he has sent and rarely pays attention to what people like him in matters of the state.

He then gave the example of how the party struck pre-poll alliance with the AIUDF despite opposition from several MLAs including him.  He said that Rahul Gandhi backed Ripun Bora, Gaurav Gogoi and Rockybul Hussain as these leaders needed to win the minority votes in their constituencies and in that process party suffered.

When asked why he joined the BJP, Kurmi said that the main reason for him is the dynamic leadership of Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma who has been given opportunities to serve our state and Assam has benefitted immensely including the tea garden community, which I represent, has benefitted a lot.

He accused Congress of drifting away from the community and came to a conclusion that if Rahul Gandhi could sacrifice a performer like Sarma so former chief minister Tarun Gogoi son Gaurav could be promoted, I did not stand any chance within that party.

When asked if he would seek some power from the BJP, Kurmi said, if that had been the case he would have moved six years ago and is not seeking any post or position in BJP. He said that all he wants to do is serve his constituency better as the voters have reposed faith in him four times.

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“DMK has failed to deliver on its poll promises”: Leader of Opposition EPS lashes out

By
The Commune
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eps dmk

Responding as the Leader of Opposition during the first assembly meeting that was held after the DMK assumed office, former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami said that the DMK has failed to deliver on what it had promised in the manifesto.

He went on to say that it was extremely disappointing that the DMK had promised a reduction of fuel prices in their manifesto despite knowing that it was not feasible. He added that Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan was “not unaware” of the situation and said that the DMK would always say one thing before the election and do the opposite when in power.

He said that the AIADMK did not suppress any information about the finances of the state while in power. This was a reply to Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan who had blamed that the financial health of the state as the reason for not being able to reduce fuel prices.

He also said that it was disappointing to see the Health Minister asking the students to prepare for NEET after promising to cancel them as soon as they came to power.

Adding on to the allegations made in the speech of Edappadi K Palaniswami, former deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam said that, in fact, after the DMK government assumed office, the prices of petrol and diesel only went up.

Both of their addresses included the fact the speech by Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit did not contain a lot of the electoral promises made by the DMK. These include the reversion of the monthly electricity billing system and the pension scheme for government teachers and employees. Palaniswami stressed that the Godavari-Cauvery link project not finding a mention in the address will be a disappointment to farmers.

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As US leaves Afghanistan, Islamic terror groups LeT, JeM and Taliban to join forces to wage global Jihad

By
The Commune
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As American forces leave Afganistan after twenty years, a French think tank. the Centre for Analysis of Terrorism in its analysis has warned that Kashmir-focused Pakistani terror outfits are now active in Afghanistan and are planning to target India and its interests, reports Economic Times.

The report by the French think tank states there is going to be a resurgence of the Taliban and more operational coordination between Pakistan army-supported groups like the Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Jaish-e-Mohammad (JeM) and the Taliban.

The report titled “Pakistani Jihadis and Global Jihad” has emphasised that Pakistan-based terror outfits like JeM and LeT have long maintained links with international terror outfits and it never severed their link with Taliban, Al Qaeda, and ISIS.

The report particularly asserts that the “synergies between regional groups in the Afghanistan-Pakistan region and the transnational groups like Al Qaeda and ISIS are a matter of concern”.

According to the think tank years of Islamic radicalisation of Pakistani society with and promotion of radical Islamist ideology will be advantagious and will provide these jihadi groups with a ready ground for recruiting radicalised youth, willing to carry out coordinated terror attacks or lone wolf attacks in any part of the world.

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3 LeT terrorists eliminated in joint operation in J&K

By
The Commune
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Infiltration Bid Foiled In J&K's Nowshera Sector, Two Terrorists Killed Two Soldiers Martyred, Two Injured as J&K’s Longest Anti-Terror Operation Enters Ninth Day

The Indian security forces have eliminated three terrorists which included top Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) terrorist Mudasir Pandit in the Union Territory (UT) of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K), reports Hindustan Times.

As per the information released by J&K Police, the three were neutralised in North Kashmir’s Sopore district during an encounter that began yesterday (20 June) evening at Tantraypora Brath village following a tip-off.

Pandit became a high-profile target for the police because of his involvement in the killing of three policemen, two councillors, and two civilians recently and other Islamic terror-related crimes.

A joint operation involving the Indian Army, J&K Police and the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) began in Sopore following the terror attack on police in the area on 12 June and in that attack, two policemen and two civilians lost their lives and the LeT took the responsibility for the attack.

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TN Health Minister: ‘NEET exam will be held until we get an exemption, students should prepare for NEET’

By
The Commune
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ma subramanian land grabbing

Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma. Subramanian said on Saturday that the DMK government cannot guarantee the cancellation of NEET at this time.

Ma. Subramanian, who was present at a vaccination drive for Leprosy patients at the Urban Community Welfare Hospital in Perungudi, Chennai, stated that the DMK government cannot assure cancellation of the NEET exam at this juncture.

He added that the DMK has not changed its stance on cancelling the NEET exam and that they are taking all necessary steps to abolish the NEET exam in Tamil Nadu. He further stated that the cancellation of NEET was part of the memorandum submitted to Prime Minister by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin, and that MK Stalin personally insisted on the cancellation of NEET when he met with Prime Minister on June 17th.

“We deny that the state is supporting NEET, but it is better that the students prepare for the examination in case the exemption is delayed. Though we are trying to get NEET exemption, the students should not remain unprepared for the test or they will be at a loss later,” he said.

This is not the first time the DMK government made a U-turn on its poll promise. Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Palanivel Thiagarajan on Sunday (June 20) announced that it is not possible to cut the petrol and diesel price, something the DMK had promised in its manifesto. Also, many people in Tamil Nadu have complained that they have not received the cash assistance provided by the government.

(with inputs from Dinamalar)

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TheCommune
The Commune is a news and views portal focusing on social and political issues of the southern part of India with a focus on Tamil Nadu.
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