KARUR: A valid media pass proved no guarantee of access for journalists covering Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s visit to Karur, as reporters and camerapersons were denied entry to both a party programme and an official government function on Friday.
They were escorted out by the police and prevented from independently reporting the events, raising concerns over repeated curbs on media access during the CM’s public engagements.
When reporters questioned why the passes had been issued, police and organisers termed it a “miscommunication” but maintained that it was a “private party event”. This was at the venue of the CM’s ‘Makkal Santhippu’ at a private college ground.
Restrictions were also imposed at the CM’s official function at the collectorate, where media personnel were made to wait outside. Minister for Water Resources N Anand assured to raise the issue with the IGP but he was unavailable later.
Event live-streamed in school, HM suspended
The school education department suspended the headmaster of a government middle school in Karur after a video, purportedly showing the live telecast of CM Vijay’s public meeting on Friday being screened inside a classroom, triggered a political controversy. The suspension order by the district educational officer (elementary), Karur, was issued against S Malliga, headmaster of the panchayat union girls’ middle school, Krishnarayapuram. Minister for School Education A Rajmohan on X said another video related to a similar incident was under investigation.