Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi came down heavy on the State Finance Minister PTR Palanivel Thiyagarajan and the DMK, saying he does not expect them to be civil and decent, and that what PTR said was a bunch of lies.
On 30 March 2023, DMK Minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan accused the Governor’s office of financial irregularities during a discussion on demand for grants. He said that the Raj Bhavan transferred ₹4 crores to a private NGO Akhsya Patra flouting norms.
PTR said, “Out of the ₹5 crores discretionary allocation in the fiscal year 2019-20, ₹4 crores has been transferred to Akshaya Patra (an NGO providing mid-day meals for school children) in two installments of ₹2 crores in 2019. There is no transparency over how and where the remaining fund of ₹1 crore is parked.”
PTR accused Raj Bhavan of multiple violations in the manner in which funds were transferred to the NGO. “There are two instances of fund transfers — ₹4 crores in 2019-20 and ₹1 crore in 2020-21 — to the Akshaya Patra Foundation. Later on, the scheme itself was shelved. It has proved to be a bad investment and an undemocratic practice,” PTR said in the Assembly.
In an interview to the Times of India, Governor RN Ravi stated that finance minister PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan lied in the first instance by claiming that the Governor’s discretionary grant is for petty charities, a few thousand rupees to needy people. The Governor said that PTR lied about the word ‘petty’ being removed from the financial code in 2000.
“I don’t expect them to be civil or decent. But I did expect them to be honest and truthful to the people of Tamil Nadu.”, Governor Ravi said.
RN Ravi said, “Finance code says that within the available budget, there cannot be and should not be a limit; that is, the governor’s discretion should not be limited. ”
On the Akshaya Patra controversy, Governor RN Ravi stated that the donation to Akshaya Patra was intended to reduce school dropouts in Greater Chennai Corporation by providing wholesome breakfast meals to students in the morning.
He went on to say that, despite the fact that the kitchen was fully set up, Akshaya Patra was forced to run from pillar to post in order to obtain a gas and water connection from corporation. Governor RN Ravi said, “They (Akshaya Patra) were told everything is fine, but they (GCC) have instructions from the CM’s office, you go and get it sorted out there. For the last 16 months Akshaya Patra has been running to the CM office. They have not succeeded in getting the CM appointment. All the documents and bank documents are there.”
Explaining that even the state government officials were part of the committee to monitor Akshaya Patra, RN Ravi said, “The estimate of that kitchen was ₹5 crores. The Governor sanctioned this amount from his discretionary grant. It is released in instalments, and a committee of the state government, headed by the additional chief secretary of the state was constituted to monitor it. A sum of ₹4.5 lakh was released, and ₹50 lakh was granted on completion of work.”
In response to finance minister PTR’s allegation that the Governor is spending a large sum on the tea party, Governor RN Ravj stated that since taking office, he has reduced the number of officials who participate in these events on Republic Day and Independence Day, while a broader spectrum of people including farmers, youth, SHGs, NGOs, people with disabilities, folk artists, classical artists, and many more.
Governor RN Ravi stated that calling it a Governor’s tea party is an insult to those who attended as well as the people of Tamil Nadu.
RN Ravi added, “Then they said money was being spent on civil service aspirants. When I joined the civil service, Tamil Nadu had the largest number of civil servants. Today, we are way below so many states. So, I started getting poor students in batches, 250 to 300 of them. I give them tips, guide them on how to prepare. I cannot send them back hungry I have to feed them. I wonder why the government should nurse a grudge about this. He (PTR) told all these lies.”
In response to PTR’s claim that the Governor’s office spent several lakhs on a tea party in Ooty, RN Ravi stated that the party was attended by Nilgiri tribes, including The Elephant Whisperers couple. He also stated that he spends his own money to pay his and his family’s food bills.
It is worth noting that, a few days ago, PTR Palanivel Thiagarajan retracted his statement about the amount transferred by Raj Bhavan to Akshaya Patra, as data had suggested otherwise.
“I am bound to retract some of the statements I made that day in the House. That day, I said that Akshaya Patra has been twice awarded two crores.”, PTR said.
He added that the funds from Governor’s discretionary fund were originally transferred to Governor’s household accounts and not Akshaya Patra’s account. He added, “The funds were then transferred to other accounts, including to Akshaya Patra.”
PTR thus admitted to lying in the assembly about the transfer of ₹4 crores from the Governor’s discretionary fund to Akshaya Patra.
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