Leaders and cadres of the Hindu Munnani on the 16th of August staged protests all over Tamil Nadu condemning the arrest of silver screen stunt master Kanal Kannan.
Yet another clear case of biased action of Dravidian Model championed by the DMK government. TN police dutifully obeyed its master’s dictate by foisting cases against Kollywood Stunt Master Kanal Kannan and arresting him on 15th August in Puducherry. Even the magistrate court had denied him anticipatory bail last week.
Kanal Kannan was addressing a public meeting organized by Hindu Munnani in Chennai, end of a 34 days yatra that the organisation had undertaken. Kannan who is the state president of Arts and literary wing of Hindu Munnani said “Being Hindu is a matter of pride. Earlier, countries were conquered through sword and war. Today they are capturing nations through religious conversion. Lakhs of Hindu devotees pray at the Srirangam Ranganathar Temple daily. Opposite to main entrance of the temple, there is a statue of a person (referring EV Ramaswamy Naicker) who said ‘there is no God. The day that statue is broken, that is the day of Hindu resurgence”.
Kanal Kannan is a well-known stunt master who had choreographed action sequences for various hit movies. His speech with fiery words of “Demolish the statue of Periyar in Srirangam” went viral on social media and has created a uproar in Tamil Nadu. A complaint was lodged at the Chennai Police Commissioner’s Office on behalf of Thanthai Periyar Dravida Kazhagam.
Demanding for his release Hindu Munnani held protests in over 70 places all over the state. The police arrested some of them and a few were released in the evening. In Chennai, the Hindu outfit’s state organizer Bakthan, state spokesperson AT Elangovan, Karu Nagarajan, Narayan Tirupathi of BJP and others took part in the protest. Police who had denied permission saying that the protest site was a Muslim dominated area. Munnani leaders countered saying that, Valluvar Kottam which is a permitted area for protests is Hindu dominated should not be allowed to be used for protest by minorities and Dravidian, Left parties. They asked police to give this in writing. After much hue and cry they were allowed the proceed with the protest but all were arrested and cases have been booked against them despite peacefully demonstrating.
In Tirupur, in front of the Corporation Office, more than 500 members of the outfit participated in the demonstration. They condemned the arrest and raised slogans against the State government. Speaking to the reporters, Hindu Munnani State president Kadeswara Subramaniam said that the situation in Tamil Nadu was worse than the Emergency period. He also added that the Hindu Munnani endorsed the comments made by Kannan.
In Tenkasi district Ayakudi town, secretary Boodathan attempted to commit suicide by consuming poison condemning police for arresting only Hindu Munnani cadres and not others. He is said to be in a critical condition.
At Sankarankovil, it is alleged, an inspector of police has bitten an ear of the cadre Velumurgan. “Policemen attacked the assembled men brutally, who were drinking tea in a shop, even before they began their protest. The police twisted the arm of Puliyangudi town president Ganesh Mary that led to a fracture. Sankarankovil town leader SM Sankar became breathless after police attacked on his back. Police denied them to be taken to hospital for treatment. We condemn police highhandedness” says Brahamanayagam of Hindu Munnani. The same way police behaved rudely in Virudhunagar, Thoothkudi, Kanyakumari, Tirunelveli districts yet all the arrested cadres continued to sit in protests.
Many have lashed out at the MK Stalin-led DMK government’s hypocrisy pointing out that no action has been taken on U2 Brutus ‘Minor’ who had abused Hindu God Lord Shiva . When Hindus protested against the installation of atheist EV Ramasamy’s statue in front of the famous Srirangam temple in 2006, Karunanidhi asked, “When temple towers have nude sculptures and when nude Gods and Goddesses are kept inside the temples, what is wrong in having a well-dressed EVR in front of the temple?”. He also said it would be a good day when Thillai Natarajar and Srirangam Ranganather temples were blown up and questioned in which Engineering College Lord Ram studied.
