In Stalin’s debt
Looks like many in the ruling DMK are indebted to its president MK Stalin. Presiding over the wedding function of MLA A Krishnasamy’s daughter recently, Stalin recalled his days as head of the DMK youth wing. He said during a flag-hosting event organised by Krishnasamy, he asked him why there were no funds for the youth wing. “But Krishnasamy did not give any funds. Still, he remains a debtor to me. But I know how to collect that debt from him,” he added. Similarly, in January this year, releasing the autobiography of DMK treasurer TR Baalu, Stalin recalled his close association with Baalu. “Baalu bought my elegant Fiat car and promised to pay Rs 12,000 and paid Rs 100 as advance. Two months later, he paid another Rs 100. In all (via installments), he only paid around Rs 2,000 and till now, Baalu remains a debtor to me,” Stalin said amidst laughter from the audience, adding that Baalu and himself are like brothers.
For namesake?
Grama sabha meetings were held across the state recently as part of Local Governance Day. In Dindigul, special grama sabha meetings were held in 306 villages. However, sources said that in some of places like Thandikudi village in Kodaikanal, many local body authorities and department officials did not turn up, and added that the meetings were merely an eye wash in D Gudalur, Adalur, Mannavanur, Poondi and Kookal, where people’s grievances were not addressed and no resolutions were passed. They say this has been the situation at these places for the last couple of years.
Actions, consequences
To mark the start of the 52nd year of AIADMK, the party conducted a public meeting at Ingur in Erode recently. Former minister KC Karuppanan was the special guest at the event. In his address, he criticised late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi and the government he headed. After the meeting, Karuppanan asked media persons to refrain from reporting what he said about Karunanidhi, adding that he made those remarks in the moment.
Out of the blue
An inauguration function was held to open free swimming classes for children in which Tiruppur collector T Christuraj, trainer, reporters and the organisers were present, on Friday. As the children lined up near the pool, the collector suddenly jumped into the water and swam across to the other side.
Inside the pool, he told the students and the trainer to jump in. As the reporters were trying to figure out if this was the plan all along, the organisers said it was an innovative way to inaugurate the class.
Matter of influence
Huge banners for birthdays, weddings, coming-of-age functions and even death anniversaries are common in Puducherry. But a few days back, a group of social activists and animal lovers erected a birthday wish banner for a dog at Rajiv Gandhi Square. In no time, personnel from D Nagar police station removed the banner and summoned the group, and warned them. After the incident went viral on social media, the police were criticised for not taking similar action against other banners put up at the same location.
Aunty? Not funny
A 45-year-old woman in Chennai lodged a police complaint on Tuesday after a conductor kept taunting her by calling her aunty on the bus. The woman in her complaint said that the man repeatedly called her aunty despite telling him not to mock her. Unable to bear the harassment, the woman pressed the panic button in the bus and also informed her husband, who then contacted the police. The conductor has been booked under IPC sections 294(b) and 509.
(Contributed by T Muruganandham, Gayathri Venkatesan, P Srinivasan, Saravanan MP, Bagalavan Perier B & Gautham Selvarajan; Compiled by Affan Abdul Kadar)