DMK held civic bodies hold grama sabha, pass resolutions against farm laws

Almost all the village panchayats, which were led by DMK men, held the event and passed resolutions demanding the Centre to repeal the farm laws.
DMK MLA EV Velu chairing a grama sabha meeting at Nachananthal village in Tiruvannamalai  (Photos by Special Arrangement)
DMK MLA EV Velu chairing a grama sabha meeting at Nachananthal village in Tiruvannamalai (Photos by Special Arrangement)

VELLORE/TIRUVANNAMALAI: Several village panchayats held grama sabha meetings defying Tamil Nadu government’s order cancelling the event on Gandhi Jayanthi day to pass resolutions against the farm laws in Tiruvannamalai district.

Almost all the village panchayats, which were led by DMK men, held the event and passed resolutions demanding the Centre to repeal the farm laws and urging Tamil Nadu government to move an appropriate court on behalf of the farming community against these laws which the party described as anti-farmer.

In Tiruvannamalai, DMK district secretary and MLA EV Velu chaired a grama sabha meeting held at Nachananthal village.

Resolutions asking the Centre to repeal the farm laws and urging Tamil Nadu government to move a case in the relevant court against the laws were passed at the meeting.

Nachananthal village panchayat president PM Nataraj, Tiruvannamalai panchayat union chairperson Kalaivani Kalaimani and vice-chairman Ramanan were also present at the grama sabha meeting.

 “There is nothing in the resolutions to hurt anybody. The resolutions simply demanded Centre to repeal the laws and the State government to move a court against them on behalf of the farmers,” Velu told TNIE.

Similar resolutions were passed in several village panchayats where DMK men head the civic bodies.

Velu, who is a former minister, noted that the heads of the rural civic bodies, village panchayat, have been vested with the powers to convene any meeting in their body and decisions/resolutions taken in such meetings cannot even be overturned by courts.

When asked whether such resolutions are legally valid, Tiruvannamalai district collector KS Kandasamy said the matter has been discussed with legal experts.

“We are seeking legal opinion on the issue, and will see action can be initiated against those village panchayat presidents who had convened the meets and passed resolutions,” he told TNIE.

In Vellore, Durai Murugan, the party’s general secretary, attended an ‘unofficial’ grama sabha organised by his party at Vandranthangal village in Katpadi block in Vellore district. This grama sabha meeting had no legal validity as there are no elected civic bodies in Vellore district where the polls were not held due to district trifurcation.

He said that his party arranged the meeting because the government had cancelled the scheduled grama sabha meeting fearing passing of resolutions against the Centre’s farm laws.

“They cancelled the grama sabha meetings scheduled on the day of Gandhi Jayanthi. This is the first time that grama sabha meetings are cancelled on Gandhi Jayanthi day,” he flayed.

Durai Murugan, who is also the deputy leader of opposition in Tamil Nadu Assembly, ridiculed the government asking whether it got enlightened on Covid virus threat only at 9 pm on Thursday.

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