Folks, here is a small part of the interaction between the CM and the Press people yesterday, as per The Hindu, (thehindu.com).
Is this question necessary? And is there a need for the CM to answer like this?:
"Q: You were not wearing any jewellery for a long time. Any reason why you have started wearing ear-studs now?
A: I was wondering why no one asked me about this. Since 1997, I have not worn any jewellery or ornaments. This decision, however, did not go down well with my party workers. Over the last few years, whenever they met me, my party cadre have been telling me, “We are very unhappy when we see you like this. You must change your decision and wear some jewellery.” They told me that just because some had pointed fingers at me in the past I shouldn’t be like this. They have been pressing me to give up my objection to wearing any ornaments, saying, “Karunanidhi and his family members, who have maligned you in the past, are themselves facing charges and legal proceedings. Why should you be like this just because someone had pointed fingers at you?” However, I didn’t heed their request. As soon as the results were declared on May 13, a large number of party workers gathered at my house to celebrate our victory. Some of them said that if even after this resounding victory I refused to wear any ornaments, they would pour kerosene on themselves and commit self-immolation. My party cadre tend to carry out such threats. Many have attempted self-immolation for various reasons in the past and we have been unable to save their lives. So, I was taken aback by their threat. As I didn’t want any untoward incident at a time when there was every reason to celebrate, I changed my mind and started wearing ear studs. If I had to wear some jewellery to save the lives of my party cadre, I was ready to change my mind and I began to wear ear studs from 14th. Already, some have cut off their own tongue and finger in the name of making an offering. These things cause me great distress. When I heard that a woman had cut off her tongue as a votive offering, I had her admitted to Theni hospital for first aid and later she was shifted to Madurai. And then she was brought to Chennai for treatment at Apollo Hospitals. She has undergone a surgery and she is now able to talk a little and doctors say she will soon regain her speech fully. Some newspapers have also made some comments on this, saying the Chief Minister is rewarding the woman who cut off her own tongue with a government job and that this amounts to encouraging such acts. It’s not like that. I didn’t expect that somebody would do such an act. As soon as I heard that it had happened, I rendered whatever assistance I could on humanitarian grounds. I enquired about her condition. Her husband has deserted her and she has two children. She has no income, and I thought the mother has to be saved for the sake of her children’s sustenance. This was why she was given a government job, and not because I wanted to reward or encourage her."
Please chime in....
Cheers.
Is this question necessary? And is there a need for the CM to answer like this?:
"Q: You were not wearing any jewellery for a long time. Any reason why you have started wearing ear-studs now?
A: I was wondering why no one asked me about this. Since 1997, I have not worn any jewellery or ornaments. This decision, however, did not go down well with my party workers. Over the last few years, whenever they met me, my party cadre have been telling me, “We are very unhappy when we see you like this. You must change your decision and wear some jewellery.” They told me that just because some had pointed fingers at me in the past I shouldn’t be like this. They have been pressing me to give up my objection to wearing any ornaments, saying, “Karunanidhi and his family members, who have maligned you in the past, are themselves facing charges and legal proceedings. Why should you be like this just because someone had pointed fingers at you?” However, I didn’t heed their request. As soon as the results were declared on May 13, a large number of party workers gathered at my house to celebrate our victory. Some of them said that if even after this resounding victory I refused to wear any ornaments, they would pour kerosene on themselves and commit self-immolation. My party cadre tend to carry out such threats. Many have attempted self-immolation for various reasons in the past and we have been unable to save their lives. So, I was taken aback by their threat. As I didn’t want any untoward incident at a time when there was every reason to celebrate, I changed my mind and started wearing ear studs. If I had to wear some jewellery to save the lives of my party cadre, I was ready to change my mind and I began to wear ear studs from 14th. Already, some have cut off their own tongue and finger in the name of making an offering. These things cause me great distress. When I heard that a woman had cut off her tongue as a votive offering, I had her admitted to Theni hospital for first aid and later she was shifted to Madurai. And then she was brought to Chennai for treatment at Apollo Hospitals. She has undergone a surgery and she is now able to talk a little and doctors say she will soon regain her speech fully. Some newspapers have also made some comments on this, saying the Chief Minister is rewarding the woman who cut off her own tongue with a government job and that this amounts to encouraging such acts. It’s not like that. I didn’t expect that somebody would do such an act. As soon as I heard that it had happened, I rendered whatever assistance I could on humanitarian grounds. I enquired about her condition. Her husband has deserted her and she has two children. She has no income, and I thought the mother has to be saved for the sake of her children’s sustenance. This was why she was given a government job, and not because I wanted to reward or encourage her."
Please chime in....
Cheers.
