Ravi Cautions Stalin of “Arrogance,” Warns against “Insult” to National Anthem, Constitution
Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Jan 12: Continuing the verbal duel between the DMK government and the Raj Bhavan in Tamil Nadu, the governor RN Ravi has hit back at the chief minister MK Stalin’s “childish” remark and warned that such “brazen insult” of the national anthem and the Indian Constitution by the state DMK government would not be tolerated by the people of the country.
Hitting out at Mr Stalin, Mr Ravi said on Sunday, “Such arrogance is not good” and warned that the country would not tolerate such “brazen insult” of the anthem and the Constitution.
The DMK government in Tamil Nadu and the Raj Bhavan have been trading barbs after the Governor walked out of the Assembly on January 6 without reading out his inaugural address to the state Assembly in protest of the National Anthem not being sung at the beginning of his address.
As per the tradition in Tamli Nadu Assembly, state anthem Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu is sung when the House meets and the National Anthem at the end. But, Governor Ravi has taken exception to this norm and said the national anthem should be sung at both times.
“The Constitution of Bharat and the National Anthem were once again insulted in the Tamil Nadu Assembly today. Respecting the National Anthem is among the first Fundamental Duty as enshrined in our Constitution. It is sung in all the state legislatures at the beginning and the end of Governor’s address,” the Raj Bhavan said in a statement after the Governor’s walkout.
“Today on arrival of Governor to the House only Tamil Thaai Vaazhthu was sung. Governor respectfully reminded the House of its Constitutional Duty and fervently appealed to the Hon’ble Chief Minister who is the Leader of the House and the Hon’ble Speaker for singing the National Anthem. However, they cussedly refused. It is a matter of grave concern. Not to be a party to such brazen disrespect to the Constitution and the National Anthem, Governor in deep anguish left the House,” the Raj Bhavan said.
Soon after, Chief Minister MK Stalin said in a post on X that the Governor had made it a custom to violate the Assembly’s tradition and called his actions “childish.” “According to the Constitution, it is a tradition of legislative democracy for the state governor to read the government’s address at the beginning of the year! He has made it his custom to violate it. It is childish that the governor, who has cut out what was there and added what was not, has gone without reading it this time,” he said, referring to passages skipped by the Governor in his earlier speeches in the Assembly.
Doubling down, the DMK chief yesterday told the House, “The Governor comes to the Assembly but returns without addressing the House. That’s why I had said his actions were childish. I think the Governor is unable to digest the fact that Tamil Nadu is developing. I may be an ordinary person but this Legislative Assembly came into existence due to the feelings of crore of people,” Mr Stalin said, adding that the Assembly “should not see such things again.”
In a social media post, the Raj Bhavan contended Mr Stalin had asserted that insisting on due respect to the national anthem and doing fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution is “absurd” and “childish.” Hitting back, the Raj Bhavan’s official handle posted on X on Sunday, “Thiru @mkstalin asserts that insisting on due respect to the National Anthem and doing fundamental duties enshrined in the Constitution is “absurd” and “childish.” Thanks for betraying the true intentions of the coalition of interests and ideologies to which he is a leader that does not accept and respect Bharat as a nation and Her Constitution.”
“Such arrogance is not good. Please do not forget that Bharat is the supreme Mother and the Constitution the supreme faith for her children. They will not like or tolerate such brazen insult,” it added.
Governor Ravi and the MK Stalin government have shared frosty ties ever since he took over in 2021. The DMK government has accused him of acting like a BJP spokesperson and blocking Bills and appointments. The Governor has said the Constitution empowers him to withhold his assent to legislation. The dispute between the Raj Bhavan and state government has also reached the Supreme Court and the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Meanwhile, the Tamil Nadu BJP demanded an unconditional apology from Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, while actor Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettai Kazhagam (TVK) said the DMK-led government has deceived the people regarding the issue of National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET).
The criticism came after Chief Minister MK Stalin told the state Assembly that NEET would have been abolished if the INDIA bloc had emerged victorious in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. He added that only the Central government has the authority to scrap the exam.
BJP state secretary SG Suryah accused Udhayanidhi Stalin of “shamelessly lying” to the people of Tamil Nadu during the 2021 Assembly election campaign by stating that abolishing NEET would be the DMK government’s priority. He also clarified that the central government has no role in implementing NEET, as it is a directive of the Supreme Court.
His statement comes a day after Vijay said on social media that the DMK deceived people with false promises, adding that it was a major poll campaign issue. Vijay said, “This is a significant social and political issue for Tamil Nadu. During the 2021 Assembly elections, the DMK promised to abolish NEET if returned to power. However, they knew fully well that this decision could only be taken by the central government.”
Speaking in the Assembly, the Chief Minister had also said that NEET did not exist during the tenures of his predecessors M Karunanidhi and J Jayalalithaa. He argued that the exam was introduced only during the tenure of Edappadi K Palaniswami’s government. MK Stalin also accused the opposition leader of remaining ‘silent’ for nearly a year during his tenure as chief minister when the Centre introduced the test.
