TN This Week: OPS Initiates Talk on Bypolls, EPS Says 'You are Not Coordinator'

Two workers suffocated to death on June 30 while cleaning the septic tank of an apartment in Perungudi, Chennai.

Student organisations and political parties picketed the RSK Higher Secondary School (CBSE) on BHEL premises on June 28 against sanskritisation. Protestors alleged that the new management was forcing the students to say 'Namaste' or 'Namaskaram' to teachers and recite the Gayatri mantra.

Tamil Nadu’s daily COVID-19 tally crossed 2,000 this week. On July 1, the reported cases were 2,385.

The price of chicken eggs in Tamil Nadu touched a historic Rs 5.50 on June 27. The Tamil Nadu Poultry Farmers Association (TNPFA) said this is due to the soaring price of chicken feed. Read more

NewsClick brings you a round-up of the happenings in Tamil Nadu this week.

EPS APPEALS SC AGAINST HC RULING

Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) faction approached the Supreme Court on June 29 against the Madras high court intervention on the June 23 All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) general council meeting. They have urged the court to vacate the HC’s wee-hour injunction order in favour of O Panneerselvam (OPS).

OPS wrote a letter to EPS on June 29, offering his will to sign the authorisation forms A and B for fielding AIADMK candidates in the byelection to the local bodies in Tamil Nadu. EPS shot back saying the general council did not accept the dual leadership, thereby OPS is not the party coordinator.

The EPS faction, which has gained an upper hand within the party, is awaiting the July 11 general council meeting to uphold single leadership.

Amidst the leadership tussle in the AIADMK, the Kodanad estate murder and heist case is once again in news. A special team questioned former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa’s driver C Kannan this week. Notably, Tehelka’s former editor Mathew Samuel accused the role of EPS in the case.

PROTESTS AGAINST ARRESTS

Political parties, human rights organisations and NGOs held protests in major towns of Tamil Nadu against the arrest of Teesta Setalvad and retired Director General of Police RB Sreekumar by the Gujarat Police.

Protest against the arrest of Setalvad and Sreekumar in Coimbatore. Image courtesy: PUCL

BJP state president K Annamalai on June 26 gave a warning saying those who are spreading falsehoods against the BJP would face the same fate as Setalvad and Sreekumar when the party comes to power in the state.

‘BAN ONLINE RUMMY’ SAYS REPORT

A four-member committee led by retired Madras High Court Justice K Chandru on June 27 submitted its report on the impact of online rummy in the state.

The committee has favoured the ban of the game. The ban proposal was not received well by the online gaming community. Read more

TEACHERS AWAIT JOBS

Prospective teacher candidates for state-run schools held a two-day hunger strike on June 29 and 30 in Chennai against opening 13,331 contractual posts. They were waiting for years to get an appointment after clearing the eligibility tests.

This came as a shock to them because DMK promised to abolish contract employment during its election campaign. Read more

Teachers oppose contract work in state-run schools, Chennai.

Moreover, the opening of kindergarten classes in government schools is likely to be delayed due to a lack of infrastructure and the non-availability of teachers.

The Union education ministry’s Performance Grading Index (PGI) for 2019-20 was released this week, and Tamil Nadu fared well in key education parameters such as access, equity, infrastructure, and governance. In digital learning, however, most districts did not even score 50%.

AIADMK GOVT'S EXCESS MEDICINE PURCHASE PROBED

The Committee on Public Accounts of the TN Legislative Assembly reported the previous AIADMK government purchased a whopping Rs 700 crore worth of medicines that lacked expiry or manufacturing date labels.

UKRAINE RETURN STUDENTS PROTEST

Tamil Nadu students, along with Puducherry students, who returned from Ukraine and their parents formed a human chain in the city on June 26 and appealed to the state and Union governments to accommodate the students in Indian medical colleges.