Protesters from several political outfits on Tuesday staged a black flag protest against Tamil Nadu governor R N Ravi, when his convoy was on the way to Dharmapuram Aadheenam mutt in Mayiladuthurai district.
The agitators were protesting against Ravi’s delay in forwarding the NEET exemption bill to the President.
The protesters from multiple outfits — including the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)’s parent body Dravidar Kazhagam, Left parties and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) (who are allies of the DMK) and Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) — had gathered on Mayiladuthurai-Tharangambadi road.
Despite heavy police deployment, the protesters raised slogans like “go back governor” and “go back Ravi’’.
The protest against Ravi, since he took over last September, comes a day after chief minister (CM) M K Stalin told the assembly that it has been 210 days since the bill is stuck with the governor and has been left unattended.
“The anti-NEET Bill, which reflects the sentiment of 7.5 crore Tamils,” Stalin said, adding, “... it amounts to hurting the sentiments of these people and belittling the century-old state assembly which passed the bill twice unanimously except with the opposition of the BJP.”
Following the protest, BJP’s Tamil Nadu president K Annamalai wrote to Union home minister Amit Shah to look into the situation on priority and take action. Annamalai complained that for the past three days, Stalin has been making “contemptuous remarks” against the governor over NEET .
{{/usCountry}}Following the protest, BJP’s Tamil Nadu president K Annamalai wrote to Union home minister Amit Shah to look into the situation on priority and take action. Annamalai complained that for the past three days, Stalin has been making “contemptuous remarks” against the governor over NEET .
{{/usCountry}}“We write this letter with the most profound concern in the wake of the unprecedented breakdown of the state’s law and order situation,” Annamalai said.
The state BJP chief alleged that DMK’s allies waived black flags, threw flag poles, water bottles and pelted stones at the governor’s convoy. “The protest looked planned and organised,” he said, adding, that it was similar to the black-flag protests in September 2019 against Prime Minister Narendra Modi when he had visited Chennai.
The Tamil Nadu police, however, denied the allegations by the state BJP. The police said that 73 people, including district secretaries of the parties mentioned above marched with black flags in hand. Iron barricades were put up in front of the protests and police vehicles were brought in to disburse them, said the police.
“The protesters got into an argument with the police saying that they could not attract the attention of the governor when the convoy passed,” said a statement from the state police.
“Visuals from the site show the protesters throwing black flags at the police vehicle after the convoy passed. So the police immediately arrested the protesters and took them to the Mayiladuthurai police station,” read the statement.
Annamalai in his letter to Shah said, “DMK as a party thinks they can threaten a constitutional authority for their ideology by resorting to such unlawful means. Slogans like “Governor is a murderer” were raised in this protest. The police took no action on those who raised these treacherous slogans,” he alleged. “The officers who failed in their duty should face the consequence…If this DMK government in Tamil Nadu cannot guarantee safe passage for a Governor, the plight of the people is unimaginable (sic).”
“There is no truth in the allegations that stones and flags were thrown at the convoy of the Honourable Governor during the protest. The police took control of the protest,” the police statement added. They added that the security detail for Ravi comprised two deputy chiefs of police, six superintendents of police, six additional superintendents of police, 21 deputy superintendents of police, 54 inspectors, 102 assistant inspectors and 1,120 police officers under the supervision of central zone police chief V Balakrishanan.
Vishwesh B Shastri, the aide-de-camp of the governor also wrote to the state DGP that “aggressive actions by the crowd attract Section 124 under the IPC.” He said that the crowd got agitated and began pushing forward to break the police cordon. “The crowd threw flags and projectile like materials at the convoy. Fortunately, honourable governor and the convoy passed unharmed,” Shastri said in his complaint.
AIADMK joint coordinator and state Leader of Opposition K Palaniswami voiced concern over the prevailing law and order situation, citing the “governor could not travel within Tamil Nadu.” He claimed that the governor’s convoy was targeted with stones and flagpoles by “anti-social elements.” “When the governor himself has no security, one wonders how this government will provide security to common people,” he said in a statement.
The Raj Bhavan did not comment on the protest but issued press statements on Ravi’s programmes on Tuesday where he participated in departmental activities of Annamalai University in Chidambaram and his inauguration of the Gnana Ratha Yatra from the mutt.
Due to the governor’s delay in forwarding the bill, the Tamil Nadu government and the DMK’s allies boycotted the governor’s ‘At Home Reception’ on April 14, coinciding with Tamil New Year’s day.
With Agency Inputs