Following the escape of a group of South Koreans and a Bulgarian while under the supervision of state authorities, Tamil Nadu officials have recently discovered that a couple, suspected to have been associated with the intelligence wing of the LTTE, managed to flee from the Mandapam camp to Sri Lanka. Tamil Nadu police officers became aware of this escape only after a video emerged on social media in Sri Lanka, featuring the escaped woman identified as Duwaraha, who is believed to be the daughter of the deceased LTTE leader Prabhakaran.
The individuals in question are K Dhayabara Raj and his wife Udayakala. In 2016, Dhayabara Raj was held in the Tiruchy special camp and subsequently went on an indefinite fast, alleging the unlawful confinement of his family at the special quarantine camp in Mandapam, Ramanathapuram. Responding to his plea, the Madurai bench of the Madras High Court ordered the state to transfer Raj, who is wanted by Interpol, to the Mandapam camp without round-the-clock security supervision.
DT Next reports sources who claim to have said, “The two were supposed to be in Mandapam under the watch of the revenue department. But a video of Udayakala has now surfaced. In the video, she was described as Duwaraha, the daughter of the late LTTE leader Prabhakaran. It looks like she has launched a political party there in the Island nation,”.
The couple, along with their three children, apparently departed from the Mandapam camp covertly in an unauthorised boat to their hometown almost two years ago. It has been alleged that the two were soliciting significant sums of money from local Tamils in Sri Lanka, offering to secure the release of their relatives held by the Sri Lankan forces following the conclusion of the civil war. Tamil Nadu police only became aware of their escape after the recent emergence of the video.
On the other hand, the Tamil Nadu police have been spending their energies on going after people who are critical of the ruling DMK on social media.
The Commune and its directors were booked for reporting on the standoff between Podu Deekshitars of the Chidambaram Nataraja Temple and HR&CE officials.
Tamil Nadu BJP State Secretary SG Suryah was arrested under non-bailable sections for his remarks against Madurai CPI-M MP Su Venkatesan over the death of a hygiene worker who was forced to clean a faeces-filled drain by a CPIM councillor. While the incident happened in Pennadam town of Cuddalore district, Suryah had inadvertently mentioned Madurai in his statement.
An AIADMK IT wing functionary was arrested under non-bailable sections for sharing a video meme that humorously referenced MK Stalin’s video statement on Senthilbalaji’s arrest. The video meme contained no derogatory content.
A Pro-BJP Twitterati was arrested for sharing an old article and allegedly misattributing DMK to an illegal liquor-producing gang in Tiruppur in light of the recent hooch tragedy in Marakkanam.
Vice President of Tamil Nadu BJP’s Industrial Cell Selva Kumar was arrested for criticizing DMK Minister Senthilbalaji.
Admin of Voice of Savukku Shankar X handle was arrested for a video meme targeting CM MK Stalin and DMK Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan, over inclusion of the clause “eligible household” for the monthly assistance scheme for women.
The DMK govt went all the way to Gujarat to arrest BJP cadre John Ravi who had made satirical social media posts on CM MK Stalin and his father late Karunanidhi.
A functionary belonging to TTV Dhinakaran’s AMMK was arrested for posting a meme that took a jibe on Tamil Nadu sports ministry headed by Udhayanidhi Stalin.
Political commentator Kishore K Swamy was arrested for posts critical of MK Stalin made in light of the monsoon preparations. He was earlier slapped with Goondas Act for criticizing DMK leaders Karunandhi, Stalin and Annadurai.
DMK critic YouTuber-turned-BJP cadre Karthik Gopinath was arrested over the issue of raising money for temples at Siruvachur in Perambalur district which were destroyed by miscreants.
BJP supporter and political analyst Krishna Kumar Murugan was arrested in the case of alleged ‘defamatory’ posters that caricatured MK Stalin.
YouTuber Maridhas was arrested for a video about Tablighi Jamaat and for a tweet that came in the light of the late Chief of Defence Staff Bipin Rawat.
Naam Tamilar functionary Ganesh Kumar alias Nila Kannan was arrested for posting an image of late DMK leader Karunanidhi having food served by three different women.
Badri Seshadri, a critic of the DMK, was arrested for his comments in an interview to a YouTube channel about the Manipur issue in which he had made remarks on the Chief Justice of India.
The spate of arrests targeting individuals who have expressed criticism towards the DMK party, juxtaposed with the apparent lapses in intelligence resulting in LTTE suspects evading capture right under the nose of law enforcement, has given rise to apprehensions regarding the Tamil Nadu police’s discernment of priorities.
(With inputs from DT Next)
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