Never failing the hate-filled Dravidian ideology, Tamil Nadu Health Minister has said that “North Indians” are spreading Covid-19 in the state. A Covid cluster is starting to emerge from two universities in Chennai and the minister has blamed students from other states studying in these institutions. in other news due to the incessant anti-North and anti-Hindi propaganda, a street vendor from a Northern state was assaulted by the public on the suspicion that he was kidnapping a small girl.
While addressing the media about the emerging Covid-19 clusters in TN, the Health Minister of the state accused “North Indian” students of spreading the virus in the state. He said, “North Indian students who came back from their states to college are spreading Covid-19 (in Tamil Nadu). Students from Kelambakkam VIT College and Sathyasai college have got affected by Covid in hostels and classes. In some North Indian states, Covid cases are still increasing”.
While the minister clearly singled out students from Northern states to blame for the Covid spread, Dravidianists and journalists came to his rescue by trying to play it down. The Indian Express which reported his remark as it is in the beginning later changed its headline to “Students from other states give rise to Covid clusters: Tamil Nadu health minister’s comment sparks row”.
It is not new for DMK ministers, despite their position, to speak in a derogatory tone about North Bharatiyas. Another minister in the DMK government, KN Nehru said mocked that Biharis don’t have brains. He said, “Biharis don’t have more brains(knowledge) than us. But 4000 Biharis work in Ponmalai, Trichy (railway) workshop. Lalu Prasad Yadav let them copy in railway exams and recruited them into Indian Railways. That is why only those from other states are standing at railway gates”
Sekar Babu the HRCE minister had issued veiled threats to Bharatiyas from northern states residing in Chennai for voting BJP. The Finance Minister PTR Thiagarajan never fails to use the “cow urine”, and the “cow belt” jibes whenever he talks about states like MP, Bihar, and UP.
A well-known DMK orator Nanjil Sampath made a racist jibe in Tamil at “foul-smelling” people from UP. He said, “there is a goat which is so smelly no person from any of the southern states will go near it even if paid Rs. 1000. A UP’ite goes near it and the goat runs away”. DMK politicians often accuse those from Northern states of snatching employment and business opportunities of Tamils as well.
When people at higher echelons of the society insult fellow Bharatiyas like this, it is no wonder that the public feels resentment towards the latter. Recently a young man selling cotton candy on the streets of Coimbatore was assaulted by the public and handed over to the police. His fault? He helped a little girl cross the road. Yogesh from UP has been staying in a room in Coimbatore and sells cotton candy in the surrounding areas of the railway station every day.
On May 28, some passerby in the Singanallur area spotted him walking along with a little girl on the road. They mistook him for a child lifter and started beating him mercilessly and handed him over to the police. But in fact, Yogesh helped the child cross the road as she was hesitant of doing it on her own. As Yogesh didn’t know Tamil he couldn’t explain the situation and took the beatings. But police released him after coming to know the truth during the investigation.
The next day the little girl’s mother reportedly spotted him on Race Course Road as he was selling candy. She told her husband about the previous day’s incident and seeing Yogesh on the streets. The man went in search of Yogesh and started beating him. He also told the onlookers that he is a child lifter and tried to kidnap a child the previous day. Everyone started assaulting him until cops arrived and cleared up the misconception. They also warned the public to not take law into their own hands and inform them instead. The incident shows how Dravidian hate politics affects “North Indians” in real-time.
