MADURAI: VCK general secretary Thol Thirumavalavan on Friday appealed to the TN government to relax the norms for installing statues of Dr BR Ambedkar. Addressing the media after attending a cadres meeting in connection with the party’s Tamil National Conference scheduled for August 17, Thirumavalavan said obtaining permission to install or unveil Ambedkar statues in TN was a difficult process.
“Ambedkar statues can be installed freely in most other states. But in TN, we require permission and can install only bronze statues, not cement. Also, we have to pay deposit for maintaining them,” he said, urging the TN government to remove such barriers, simplify the approval process, and empower collectors to grant permission for installing statues. Referring to police action during the recent clash over the Ambedkar statue in Salem that has not been inaugurated for the last seven years and remains covered, Thirumavalavan said police had acted in a discriminatory manner and demanded the release of all those arrested.