News Tamil Nadu

DMK & D Stock Media Cry Foul Over Tamil Thaai Anthem Row In Karnataka, Annamalai Hits Back

April 28, 2023
The Commune

On Thursday (27 April 2023), a video of BJP Tamil Nadu President K. Annamalai on a political stage in Shivamogga went viral on social media.

In the video, as Annamalai along with former Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka KS Eshwarappa and other leaders rise up, the Tamil Thaai anthem begins to play.

While Annamalai can be seen standing still, Eshwarappa can be seen asking the organizers to play the Karnataka official song first and so the Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu was stopped mid-way.

This video was made into a political issue by the DMK and Dravidian Stockist media in what many consider an attempt to whip up Tamil passion to divert focus away from the series of setbacks DMK government has been facing in Tamil Nadu.

DMK MP Kanimozhi has demanded an apology from Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai for “disrespecting” the state anthem ‘Tamil Thai Vazthu’ during the DMK’s election campaign in Karnataka’s Shivamogga district.

Kanimozhi on her Twitter handle said, “How can someone, who could not stop his party members from degrading ‘Tamil Thai Vazthu’, care about people of Tamil Nadu?”

Alleged ‘journalist’ Shabbir Ahmed of Dravidian Stockist propaganda outlet The News Minute (TNM) tried to amplify the trivial issue saying that BJP wants Tamil votes but won’t allow Tamil Thaai anthem to be played

However, Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai hits back on DMK’s Tamil Anthem Row, saying that it is customary for a state’s own anthem to be played before another state’s anthem.

Hitting back at DMK for the Tamil Anthem row, Annamalai said, “Eshwarappa organized a public meeting in Shimoga in Karnataka. Eshwarappa wanted Karnataka Anthem to be sung before the start of the meeting. It is customary to play Karnataka Anthem before any event. However, the audio operator wrongly played Tamil Anthem. Even the Tamil anthem which was played was not proper. Despite that, I stood up and paid respect. However, it is customary in Karnataka to play the Karnataka Anthem before the Tamil Anthem. Hence what happened is not wrong.”

Annamalai tweeted an old news clip of Chief Minister MK Stalin, then the Opposition Leader, in which MK Stalin insults the national flag by not saluting the flag after hoisting it in front of Anna Arivalayam. It also states that the national anthem was not played after hoisting the flag.

In his tweet, Annamalai said, “Do you need all this with a leader who doesn’t know to play the national anthem after hoisting our national flag? Isn’t it your history of removing the line “Kannadamung Kalitelungum Kavinmalayalamum Tuluvum” from the Tamil anthem song, thus sowing the seeds of division?”

“Our only mission is to save the Tamil people from you and DMK’s cheap politics. Do not worry,” he added.

Many on social media pointed said that this is an attempt to divert the attention of people away from the IT raids taking place in the DMK’s first family-linked GSquare real estate firm.

The Commune in an editorial published a few days ago predicted that DMK MP Kanimozhi will come out with a trivial issue to divert attention away from IT raids, and that has exactly happened. The article can be accessed here.

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