Taking on the Governor for his criticism of the DMK government over the murder of an army man by a party functionary, Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K Ponmudy on Wednesday asked R N Ravi to stop “distorting” the state’s “dignity” in the global arena by posting comments on social media like a politician to fulfill the “desires” of his appointees.
In a strongly worded three-page statement, Ponmudy also accused the Governor of converting Raj Bhavan into a 'coffee shop’ by posting pictures and details of his meeting with “jobless people” on Twitter and other social media handles. He also criticized the governor for his remarks that Karl Marx’s philosophies and others hit India’s growth.
“When will the Raj Bhavan, which tweets about a representation handed over to the Governor at the instance of a political party (BJP), release details about the bill banning online gambling passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly pending before it? What will it tell about other legislations that are pending for the Governor’s assent?” the minister asked.
Some Ex-Servicemen met Governor and shared their collective anguish at the gruesome killing of M. Prabhu, a serving soldier by an armed gang led by a DMK councillor and lukewarm response of the state law enforcement.(1/2)#IndianArmy@PMOIndia @HMOIndia @PIB_India @ANI @PTI_News pic.twitter.com/fAoWpj9oHK
— RAJ BHAVAN, TAMIL NADU (@rajbhavan_tn) February 21, 2023
Ponmudy was referring to a tweet that the Raj Bhavan’s Twitter handle put out on February 21 night terming the killing of the army man, M Prabhu, as “gruesome” and a “matter of serious concern.” The minister said the army man was killed after an argument between “close blood relatives” over a petty issue and that the police filed an FIR and arrested the involved.
“Expect for the fact that the accused is a councillor of the ruling party, there is no politics in the murder. But the BJP, which has made patriotism a politically-saleable product, is using the incident for media publicity. The party organised a protest and made a former army man speak that there might be deterioration of law and order in the state,” Ponmudy said.
The governor should “immediately stop” playing “like a child” by throwing to the wind the dignity attached with the position he holds. “He should stop making statements that distort Tamil Nadu’s image in the global arena only for his own publicity and to fulfill the desire of those who appointed him,” Ponmudy said.
“He (the governor) should stop posting statements on social media like politicians and work in line with the duties accorded to him. Only that will justify the salary he receives from taxpayer’s money,” the minister added.
In the statement, Ponmudy also spoke about the controversial statements that the Governor made in the past like advocating that Tamizhagam was an appropriate name for the state than Tamil Nadu and on Thirukkural.
The Raj Bhavan’s tweet which indirectly blamed the police for “lukewarm response” is the latest round of friction between Governor Ravi and the DMK government. The two don’t share the best of relations and are at loggerheads often, mostly on pending bills and ideological issues.
The BJP maintains the murder reflected DMK’s “cruel disrespect to our Indian Army”, but Krishnagiri Police last week said the victim and the accused were “close blood relatives” and the “unfortunate incident” took place over a petty issue.