Ashamed To Be A Tamilan

[Guest guest]

Between U and Me

 

The Urban Indian News Weekly, New York issue dated Dec 10, 2004

 

 

 

Ashamed To Be A Tamilan

 

By Prakash M Swamy

 

 

 

For the first time in my life, I am ashamed to be from the state of

Tamil Nadu and a media person having trained and worked in the city

of Madras, now called Chennai. I have always felt that I am a proud

citizen of Tamil Nadu, land of great saints and savants, freedom

fighters and scholars. The state is now going to dogs, literally.

 

As a journalist, I have covered many a political event and

interacted closely with politicians of various hue in my career

spanning over 25 years in three major publications, including

matinee idol-turned politician and founder of AIADMK M G

Ramachandran, Congress leader G.K. Moopanar, DMK chief Muthuvel

Karunanidhi and BJP leaders such as Jana Krishnamurthy and L.

Ganesan. I had interacted with the true nationalist Kamaraj as a

student leader and was awe-struck with his simplicity and honesty.

As the lead investigator of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination scoop, I

had interacted several times with Sonia Gandhi at the Raj Bhavan and

was struck at her openness and cordiality.

 

As a political correspondent, I had been privy to the birth of

AIADMK, vertical split of the DMK leading to the formation of MDMK,

the breaking of the monolith Congress Party and the merger of

smaller parties. Even those politicians pose as though they are

hostile to the media in public, share a lot of information in

private and exude warmness. I had witnessed a sort of love-hate

relationship between the media and the politicians in the state

constantly. I had gathered immense material for my research article

on "25 years of Dravidian misrule in Tamil Nadu `for India Today and

had an opportunity to discuss with politician of every hue, off the

record to read their minds.

 

Having said this, I hasten to add that I had failed to comprehend

and gauge a politician throughout my career. The person is none

other than femme fatale -- Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

 

We both assumed charge almost at the same time – she as chief

minister and I, as bureau chief of India Today in Chennai in 1991.

She is the most enigmatic politician I had ever seen in my career.

Laloo had to hang his head in shame before her antics. Her latest

move to detain the most revered Sankaracharya in a foisted up case

speaks volumes of her state and stability of mind. Friends today and

foes tomorrow has been her mantra be it Sankaracharya, Vajpayee,

Sonia Gandhi, Subramanian Swamy or Dr Ramadoss. From an understudy

of MGR in politics and his popular heroine in movies and companion

in life, she has come a long way in politics.

 

My first major article on her began on a stormy note. She leveled

molestation charge against the then state governor and a seasoned

politician Dr M. Chenna Reddy in early 1990s and sending shock waves

across the nation. From then, there is no turning back for her.

Thinking retrospectively, I am happy that she did not file case

against the Acharya on a charge of possessing marijuana that would

have prevented him from any further appeal. The BJP government was

helpless in seeking the release of one its alliance partner MDMK

leader Vaiko when she threw him in the jail for anti-national

activities under POTA. She jailed her adopted son V.N. Sudhakaran in

prison on a charge of possessing dope when he fell out of her on

money matters. She did not stop with that. She followed the same

tactics and filed marijuana case against the son-in-law of the then

Judge of the Madras High Court Justice A.R. Lakshm anan as he

refused to "bail her "out in many of the criminal cases that came up

for hearing before his bench. He is now a senior member of the

nation's apex court Bench.

 

It was during her regime that an attorney who vigorously pursued all

her shady deals including the now infamous Tansi land scam was

nearly killed. Now a member of parliament of the DMK and a leading

attorney R. Shanmugasundaram was brutally attacked by dangerous

weapons in 48 places in his body and was lying in hospital bed for

six months. This is the body politic of the state.

 

You want to see another face of the same politician? Acid was thrown

on the face of a senior IAS officer V. Chandralekha who refused to

yield to government's pressure in the disinvestment of Southern

Petro Chemicals in Chennai. The beautiful woman's face was

disfigured and the kiss-of-death compelled her to enter into

politics against Jayalalithaa.

 

Coming to the Sankaracharya's case, there could be no doubt that law

should take its own course if he was found guilty. But the shape of

things suggest that the government had acted in haste without any

evidence to settle scores and now indulging in smear campaign to

defame the senior seer. The police are literally carrying a manhunt

and drags people who were not even remotely connected with the case.

I wonder whether someone would come out with a statement in the

following weeks that Kanchi Acharya had raped her and gave her a

child or deserted her.

 

People in glass houses should refrain from throwing stones and

persons with questionable morality should not indulge in damaging an

institution. The media that was bashed up by the same Jayalalithaa

is now backing her to the hilt closing its eyes to the reality. The

media in Tamil Nadu has assumed the role of a policeman, public

prosecutor, jury, judge, jailor and hangman using its 0.5 mm

ballpoint pen as the powerful potent weapon little realizing that it

would bounce back on them at the most inappropriate time. New York-

based Committee to Protect Journalists had named Tamil Nadu as the

battleground for genuine media persons wanting to practice

investigative journalism. God Save Tamil Nadu and its wonderful

people.

[Guest guest]

There is a solution to the madness that has just begin engulfing

Hindustan. The solution is for the Hindu intelligencia (not the

leftists) to keep the fire of Nationalistic Hinduism buring in the

hearts and minds of young Hindus who're ready to pickup arms and

fight against this secular government.

 

Fiery speaches and secret financial help for those Hindus who're

willing to lay down their lives for the expulsion of Islamic savages

and cunning-converting-Chritians is the solution here. This solution

worked in Gujarat, it can work everywhere else as well.

 

The selling-out of Hindustan by the psuedo-secularist have to stop.

The breeding program of Muslims (4 wives and 15 kids) that is geared

towards destroying Hindustan from the inside has to stop. The

conversion program of Chrsitian missionaries have to stop--almost

entire Nortwestern Hindustan and Kerala is now coverted, this has to

stop.

 

The only way to stop this is a Hindu revolution supported by the

government and the Army.

 

Keep writing such letters as the one noted below and, more so,

keeping talking to the young Hindus, encourage them to join RSS and

Bagrang-dal and some day we will be able to establish a Ram-Rajya and

a Hindustan by the Hindus, for the Hindus and of the Hindus and Hindu

derivatives of Sihks, Jains and Buddhists and Parsis who're friends

Hindus.

 

The fighting Hindu

 

vedic astrology, "amolmandar"

<amolmandar> wrote:

>

> Between U and Me

>

> The Urban Indian News Weekly, New York issue dated Dec 10, 2004

>

>

>

> Ashamed To Be A Tamilan

>

> By Prakash M Swamy

>

>

>

> For the first time in my life, I am ashamed to be from the state of

> Tamil Nadu and a media person having trained and worked in the city

> of Madras, now called Chennai. I have always felt that I am a proud

> citizen of Tamil Nadu, land of great saints and savants, freedom

> fighters and scholars. The state is now going to dogs, literally.

>

> As a journalist, I have covered many a political event and

> interacted closely with politicians of various hue in my career

> spanning over 25 years in three major publications, including

> matinee idol-turned politician and founder of AIADMK M G

> Ramachandran, Congress leader G.K. Moopanar, DMK chief Muthuvel

> Karunanidhi and BJP leaders such as Jana Krishnamurthy and L.

> Ganesan. I had interacted with the true nationalist Kamaraj as a

> student leader and was awe-struck with his simplicity and honesty.

> As the lead investigator of the Rajiv Gandhi assassination scoop, I

> had interacted several times with Sonia Gandhi at the Raj Bhavan

and

> was struck at her openness and cordiality.

>

> As a political correspondent, I had been privy to the birth of

> AIADMK, vertical split of the DMK leading to the formation of MDMK,

> the breaking of the monolith Congress Party and the merger of

> smaller parties. Even those politicians pose as though they are

> hostile to the media in public, share a lot of information in

> private and exude warmness. I had witnessed a sort of love-hate

> relationship between the media and the politicians in the state

> constantly. I had gathered immense material for my research article

> on "25 years of Dravidian misrule in Tamil Nadu `for India Today

and

> had an opportunity to discuss with politician of every hue, off the

> record to read their minds.

>

> Having said this, I hasten to add that I had failed to comprehend

> and gauge a politician throughout my career. The person is none

> other than femme fatale -- Chief Minister Jayalalithaa.

>

> We both assumed charge almost at the same time – she as chief

> minister and I, as bureau chief of India Today in Chennai in 1991.

> She is the most enigmatic politician I had ever seen in my career.

> Laloo had to hang his head in shame before her antics. Her latest

> move to detain the most revered Sankaracharya in a foisted up case

> speaks volumes of her state and stability of mind. Friends today

and

> foes tomorrow has been her mantra be it Sankaracharya, Vajpayee,

> Sonia Gandhi, Subramanian Swamy or Dr Ramadoss. From an understudy

> of MGR in politics and his popular heroine in movies and companion

> in life, she has come a long way in politics.

>

> My first major article on her began on a stormy note. She leveled

> molestation charge against the then state governor and a seasoned

> politician Dr M. Chenna Reddy in early 1990s and sending shock

waves

> across the nation. From then, there is no turning back for her.

> Thinking retrospectively, I am happy that she did not file case

> against the Acharya on a charge of possessing marijuana that would

> have prevented him from any further appeal. The BJP government was

> helpless in seeking the release of one its alliance partner MDMK

> leader Vaiko when she threw him in the jail for anti-national

> activities under POTA. She jailed her adopted son V.N. Sudhakaran

in

> prison on a charge of possessing dope when he fell out of her on

> money matters. She did not stop with that. She followed the same

> tactics and filed marijuana case against the son-in-law of the then

> Judge of the Madras High Court Justice A.R. Lakshm anan as he

> refused to "bail her "out in many of the criminal cases that came

up

> for hearing before his bench. He is now a senior member of the

> nation's apex court Bench.

>

> It was during her regime that an attorney who vigorously pursued

all

> her shady deals including the now infamous Tansi land scam was

> nearly killed. Now a member of parliament of the DMK and a leading

> attorney R. Shanmugasundaram was brutally attacked by dangerous

> weapons in 48 places in his body and was lying in hospital bed for

> six months. This is the body politic of the state.

>

> You want to see another face of the same politician? Acid was

thrown

> on the face of a senior IAS officer V. Chandralekha who refused to

> yield to government's pressure in the disinvestment of Southern

> Petro Chemicals in Chennai. The beautiful woman's face was

> disfigured and the kiss-of-death compelled her to enter into

> politics against Jayalalithaa.

>

> Coming to the Sankaracharya's case, there could be no doubt that

law

> should take its own course if he was found guilty. But the shape of

> things suggest that the government had acted in haste without any

> evidence to settle scores and now indulging in smear campaign to

> defame the senior seer. The police are literally carrying a manhunt

> and drags people who were not even remotely connected with the

case.

> I wonder whether someone would come out with a statement in the

> following weeks that Kanchi Acharya had raped her and gave her a

> child or deserted her.

>

> People in glass houses should refrain from throwing stones and

> persons with questionable morality should not indulge in damaging

an

> institution. The media that was bashed up by the same Jayalalithaa

> is now backing her to the hilt closing its eyes to the reality. The

> media in Tamil Nadu has assumed the role of a policeman, public

> prosecutor, jury, judge, jailor and hangman using its 0.5 mm

> ballpoint pen as the powerful potent weapon little realizing that

it

> would bounce back on them at the most inappropriate time. New York-

> based Committee to Protect Journalists had named Tamil Nadu as the

> battleground for genuine media persons wanting to practice

> investigative journalism. God Save Tamil Nadu and its wonderful

> people.