By        Narasimhan Vijayaraghavan

It is 22nd June,2024. Saturday. 15.40 hrs. Venue: Narada Gana Sabha, Alwarpet,Chennai. The huge hall is filled to the brim for a 16.00 hour start to the programme. And the aisles are occupied by squatters. There are cameras in every direction ready to shoot. What the hell ( why use this expression- for nothing else would capture the occasion, you see). Is going on?

It is a sight for sore eyes. As a writer,  yours  truly is stunned into silence and meditative writing. The occasion: Release of the book- Ramayana Vol.1- Harper Collin’s- Rs.699/-378 pp. Author: Dushyant Sridhar. And a queue to buy books, at the entrance. Bharat Ratna M S Subbulakshmi is playing. Ramayana songs, in her mellifluous voice. And the gathering to listen/watch a galaxy of speakers. It does not happen everyday. Not even once in a blue moon. Surely , not in Chennai.

In this WhatsApp, Facebook,  Instagram, Teldgram, Twitter age, reading is no longer cool. WhatsApp forwards make the faculty and syllabus,  as if an University. Old, middle aged and young are in attendance. There is a sense of  devotion as MS sings her iconic bajans. Prayers on the lips. Above all else, as a writer one is moved by just the event. To release a BOOK. Just a BOOK. Such a huge gathering in Chennai. And on a Saturday afternoon.

What brings them all? The author? The speakers? Subject? A mix of all of them. I pick up a copy. Sold at a discount for Rs.600/-.First  look at the cover. Breathtaking. Stunning. Colorful and caltivating. A work of art. The dexterous drawings are from the mighty pen, pencil, painting of the non pareil V Keshav. He, of the cartoonist fame. This is different. Uniquely distinct for a spiritual journey of a well known epic of thousands of years vintage!

Even as one is instantly drawn to reading the book, aware of the storyline, characters et al, the show begins on the dot. Time to sit back, relax and drink the event. One is used to book releases, where friends and family make the numbers. Even a 50 seater would be too big to fill. The sense of anticipation from an eager beaver audience was unusual and fit to absorb and remember.

Well, surely I shall review the book, later. For now, just the occasion is overwhelming for a book lover, whose passion is writing. It is lovely to see such a huge crowd of all ages,   for a book release! Genuinely moved? Jai Shri Ram!

• TS Venkatesan

In Tamil Nadu it is also albeit any official orders, Christian and government schools Hindu students have been denied not sport kum kum, sandan , sacred ashe, gopi or other spiritual signs on their forehead, do not wear bangles, no Tulasi or Rudrksha Mala, should not bedeck flowers on their plaits, no black or saffron dhoties during Iyyappa yatra penance period and son. If the government accepts the recommendations of retired High Court Judge known for his Communist leanings and atheist ideologies, the above restrictions on hindu students will become official. The report, it is learnt, silent on wearing hijab, skull cap, chain with cross or rosary.

Justice Chandru’s committee was formed after the disturbing Nanguneri incident in Tirunelveli district where two Scheduled Caste students were attacked by students from an intermediate caste.

Tamil Nadu DMK government had set up a committee to suggest measures to prevent caste-based discrimination and violence in education institutions which submitted its report to Chief Minister MK Stalin. on Tuesday (18th June). The committee was constituted in August 2023 after a brother-sister duo, belonging to the Scheduled Caste community in Tirunelveli’s Nanguneri , were assaulted by their schoolmates over caste differences.

A Class 12 Scheduled Caste student Chinnadurai, aged 17, and his younger sister, aged 14, were viciously attacked with sickles within the confines of their home on the night of 9 August 2023. The assault, carried out by three of Chinnadurai’s schoolmates, came just hours after he had lodged a complaint against them with the school headmaster, detailing their persistent harassment. The assailants belonged to a dominant caste, were apprehended by the police and charges were filed under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. It is alleged that Chinnadurai had been subjected to caste-based harassment at the government-aided school in Valliyoor. The perpetrators, belonging to the Maravar community, reportedly subjected him to humiliation, coercing him to procure cigarettes and snacks for them and subjecting him to bullying. The situation reached a stage where Chinnadurai felt compelled to share his torment with his parents and even stopped attending school a week before the horrifying attack.

After getting details from his parents, the school authorities warned the harassers and urged the victim to resume his studies, events took a sinister turn when the gang confronted Chinnadurai within the school premises, warning him of dire consequences for having reported them. Later that night, around 10:30 pm, the six accused students reportedly reached the victim’s residence, wielding sickles, and launched a brutal assault. In an attempt to shield her brother, Chinnadurai’s sister also suffered injuries.

In this background, the committee has given its report suggesting “significant” changes to eliminate caste indicators in Tamil Nadu schools. It includes banning coloured wrist threads, rings, and forehead marks – tilak that signify caste, and removing caste-related names from schools. Point 8B

states, “Students should be prohibited from wearing any coloured wristbands, rings, or forehead marks (Tilaka). They must also refrain from coming to school on bicycles painted with reference to their caste or exhibiting any caste-related sentiments. Failure to comply with these rules must result in appropriate action being taken, in addition to advising their parents or guardians.”

Interestingly, the committee suggested that an expert body or agency be appointed by the government to investigate allegations of saffronisation of education and activities that infiltrate educational institutions, hampering caste and communal harmony.

The report advises that students must not display any caste-related sentiments, including using bicycles marked with caste references. Non-compliance should result in appropriate actions and parental advisement.

State-run schools should remove terms like ‘Kallar Reclamation’ and ‘Adi Dravidar Welfare’ from their names. Private schools should be requested to drop caste appellations, with legal action considered for non-compliance, potentially through legislative changes.

The committee also recommended that students refrain from using bicycles painted with references to their caste or exhibiting any caste-related sentiments. Importantly, the committee proposed that seating arrangements of students in every classroom in all schools and colleges should be strictly based on alphabetical order.

The committee also recommends that student attendance registers omit any caste-related details. Teachers should avoid calling students by their caste or making derogatory remarks linked to caste.

To enforce these changes, the report suggests amending the Tamil Nadu Societies Registration Act, 1975, to prevent societies intending to start educational institutions from using caste-based names.

The report also calls for new legislation to promote social inclusion and eradicate caste discrimination, imposing responsibilities on students, staff, and school management, with mechanisms for supervision and penalties for non-compliance.

It says “Regarding the posting of officers from the cadre of CEOs, DEOs, BEOs, and Headmasters of high schools and higher secondary schools, guidelines must be issued concerning the non-posting of persons belonging to the dominant caste of that area”.

At the time of recruitment of teachers, it proposed that the aptitude of the teachers, as well as their attitude towards social justice issues, must be ascertained. Additionally, teachers and staff of schools and colleges must undergo compulsory orientation programs relating to social issues, caste discrimination, sexual violence, and offenses against SC/ST.”

Critics view this move as a method to divide the Hindus further based on caste and also ensure that Hindus lose their identities forever. Instead of creating awareness and empathy in children about various castes and fostering harmony, recommending such drastic and Hindu phobic measures will only lead to dividing the society further and deepening the Dravidianist ideologies in the minds of the people and destroying society.

It is pertinent to note that this retired judge also had hurled casteist slurs at Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman. In this tweet, Justice Chandru appeared to make a veiled remark about a BJP

leader, presumably Annamalai, by stating, “Like Pickle Lady (a derogatory term targeting Tamil Brahmin women), he is attempting to become a Rajya Sabha member from Karnataka.” He implied that Annamalai’s aspirations mirror those of Nirmala Sitharaman, referred to as ‘Oorka Ammaiyaar.’

Another critics says “ it is shocking. It is an Anti Hindu move as advised by Dravidar Kazhagam. Will they ban Black hijab and skull cap in TN schools? Will they ban sunnat and other religious ceremonies? Will they ban wearing Christian cross in neck chains or Rosary beads?.

In school text books, there are pictures with Muslims boys in Skull cap, girls with hizab and burka, Christian boys wearing cross on his next. But hindu boys and girls are seen without any identifications. https://newsmeter.in/h-upload/2024/06/16/374080-1000160121.webp

In the recent TNPSC group IV exam, unrelated questions like (the first two) on Christianity have kicked off controversy. What was the need for govt. job aspirants?. Will the government set its house in order first then ordering others?

Theni panchayat ward member tears the retd.hc Chandru panel report saying in 3rd std.