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TN college dean denies sending circular on puja amid row

Surya said though there “may be hundred differences” in the INDIA block of which DMK and Congress are key constituents, they are united in their “hatred and contempt for the indigenous culture”

Updated on: Oct 21, 2023, 06:34:08 IST
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Chennai: The dean of the Tiruppur Government Medical College Hospital in Tamil Nadu has dismissed BJP MP Tejasvi Surya’s post on social media regarding a purported college circular on not allowing portraits of gods during the Ayudha puja, calling it as “fake”.

The post on X, formerly Twitter, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya had alleged that the Tamil Nadu government has begun to target an “important cultural ritual” like the Congress government in Karnataka.
The post on X, formerly Twitter, BJP MP Tejasvi Surya had alleged that the Tamil Nadu government has begun to target an “important cultural ritual” like the Congress government in Karnataka.

In the post on X, formerly Twitter, Surya had alleged that the Tamil Nadu government has begun to target an “important cultural ritual” like the Congress government in Karnataka.

“2 states. 2 GOs. One target - Ayudha Puja,” Surya posted on X on Friday. It escalated into a controversy after BJP leaders, such as union minister of state L Murugan and Tamil Nadu state president K Annamalai, also joined Surya in their condemnation that the DMK-led government and the INDIA grouping are against Sanatana Dharma. A month ago, Tamil Nadu minister Udhyanidhi Stalin caused a nation-wide stir after he called for the eradication of Sanatana Dharma.

Surya said that though there “may be hundred differences” in the INDIA block of which DMK and Congress are key constituents, they are united in their “hatred and contempt for the indigenous culture”. He accused the two parties in power of having issued government orders prohibiting the use of flowers, kumkum, turmeric and other puja essentials at government offices during Ayudha Puja. “For years, all government offices and employees in southern India observe Ayudha Puja with great fervour. The alliance has now set its target on this important cultural ritual,” Surya said.

The BJP MP from Bengaluru South posted two circulars in Kannada and Tamil. The circular in Tamil was from the Tiruppur government hospital to not use any portraits of deities as part of the Ayudha Pooja and Saraswathi Pooja as per instructions from the district collector which the dean has rejected as fake.

“No such circular has been issued by the Tirupur government hospital and its branches” said the dean R Murugesan in a statement. “False messages are being circulated on social media. This is untrue.”

  • Divya Chandrababu
    ABOUT THE AUTHOR
    Divya Chandrababu

    Divya Chandrababu is an award-winning political and human rights journalist based in Chennai, India. Divya is presently Assistant Editor of the Hindustan Times where she covers Tamil Nadu & Puducherry. She started her career as a broadcast journalist at NDTV-Hindu where she anchored and wrote prime time news bulletins. Later, she covered politics, development, mental health, child and disability rights for The Times of India. Divya has been a journalism fellow for several programs including the Asia Journalism Fellowship at Singapore and the KAS Media Asia- The Caravan for narrative journalism. Divya has a master's in politics and international studies from the University of Warwick, UK. As an independent journalist Divya has written for Indian and foreign publications on domestic and international affairs.Read More