Off the cuff: Uncovered PR tactics

What’s the best way to get the attention of those in power to resolve issues plaguing the public? Well, hope that they get to experience it firsthand and a quick resolution may follow soon.

Victims who were allegedly tortured by former Ambasamudram ASP Balveer Singh visited State human rights commission to give their statement against the IPS officer in Chennai. (Photo | Ashwin Prasath,

Uncovered PR tactics 
At a time when the alleged custodial torture by Ambasamudram ASP Balveer Singh (now suspended) shook the conscience of a state, a flex demanding the chief minister to revoke his suspension came up in Odaikarai Thulukkapatti village in the name of all village residents. When TNIE met more than 20 villagers residing near the place where the flex was put up, they did not know about Singh and said the flex was put up by a reporter of Kaavalar Voice magazine and a few administrators of Muppidathi Amman Temple

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Learning the hard way 
What’s the best way to get the attention of those in power to resolve issues plaguing the public? Well, hope that they get to experience it firsthand and a quick resolution may follow soon. This is exactly what happened in Coimbatore city. Mayor Kalpana Anadakumar slipped and injured herself during her routine ward visit and inspection a few weeks ago and was admitted to the hospital for treatment. Soon after, Kalpana allotted `5 crore to pave new roads and construct drains in the area she visited. In view of this, during the corporation’s budget session held on Friday, a few councillors urged the mayor to visit their wards in order to get funds for their respective wards.

Eroding principles
There was a time when Left parties and organisations staged protests with the goal of rendering social justice, but CPM cadres now say that party functionaries expect something in return for staging protests or raising voices against injustice. On Thursday, Madurai Kamaraj University assistant professor Shanmugaraja, who is affiliated with CPM, was remanded by PCR court for verbally abusing an SC girl. Although many CPM lawyers came to represent the professor, left outfits such as SFI and AIDWA did not raise their voice for the girl. A party cadre said this is not the first time, pointing out that two years back a corporation school girl was sexually harassed by a teacher and the police booked him, but SFI and AIDWA did not show any interest in rendering social justice to the girl

Auspicious start
When the students of Kalakshetra launched their protest on March 30, donning orange sarees, against sexual harassment by four teachers on the campus, the media persons covering the event had little idea about the mythological angle behind it. A few of the agitating students said they chose the day to start their fight on March 30 as it was the auspicious Ram Navami. “Ram Navami is celebrated as the birthday of Lord Rama and we thought it would be the apt day to start our fight against adharma, “ said an agitating student.

Ready, steady… wait 
Officials at the water resources department were left in a sticky situation when the state government included some announcements for the Tamil Nadu Irrigated Agriculture Modernization project in the recent budget, as the scheme was already announced and even a government order was issued. Confused, official sources said they are discussing whether to cancel the previous government order or recall the budget announcement.

(Contributed by Jeyalakshmi Ramanujam, Thinakaran Rajamani, Aravind Raj, Binita Jaiswal & S Guruvanmikanathan; compiled by Affan Abdul Kadar)