Stalin dials Nitish; Bihar officials in Chennai; cases against Dainik Bhaskar, 'Tanveer Post'

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin rang up his Bihar counterpart Nitish Kumar, assuring him of the safety and security of migrant workers. Dismissing the purported attacks on migrants as fake and an evil design to discredit the DMK government, he said Tamil Nadu is always known as a place where migrants continue to thrive and flourish, reports ETV Bharat's MC Rajan.

Chennai: To quell the rumours of attacks on migrant workers from the north in Tamil Nadu which has acquired inter-state ramifications, Chief Minister MK Stalin spoke to his Bihar counterpart over the phone, guaranteeing the safety of labourers. A team of officials from Bihar also reached Chennai Saturday evening and held a discussion with Chennai Collector S Amirtha Jothi to obtain first-hand information on the alleged rumours.

“I contacted my highly respected brother Nitish Kumar over the phone and spoke to him about this issue. All labourers are our workers who help in the growth of our state, I said and assured that they would not face any problem here,” Stalin said in a statement released to the media, adding “To my migrant workers from all states, I reiterate that this government and the people of the state will remain a protective wall to the labourers from other state and as such you need not harbour any apprehension on the basis of wrong news reports.”

The four-member team, comprising D Balamurugan, Secretary of Rural Development, P Kannan, IGP (CID), Shree Alok, Special Secretary, Labour Department and Santhosh Kumar, Superintendent of Police, drove straight to the Chennai Collectorate immediately upon their arrival here for an assessment. They are expected to meet senior State officials before winding up their visit.

On the genesis of this rumour-mongering which has spread like wildfire, Chief Minister Stalin noted: “It was a media person from Bihar who had posted a clash that had happened in a state elsewhere as if it took place in Tamil Nadu. This was how it all started. Hence, I request the media and the television media as well as those using social media to realise their social responsibility and post news in accordance with media ethics. They should refrain from sensationalism without confirming the authenticity of the news.”

He made it clear that stern action would be taken against those who spread fake and false news to create fear and panic. “They are anti-Indians working against the unity and integrity of the country,” he said. Listing the various benefits extended to migrant labourers and how the state government, local bodies and the public have ensured their protection during the Covid pandemic lockdown, the statement read: “From time immemorial, Tamil Nadu has been a cradle of grace, rendering yeomen service to mankind. It will remain so forever. That the land has received all those who landed here with open arms and migrants themselves would attest that they have thrived here. For ages, people have come here, for business, health, education and employment, enhancing Tamil Nadu while empowering themselves,” Stalin recalled.

Meanwhile, Tamil Nadu DGP, C Sylendra Babu has said that cases have been booked against the editor of 'Dainik Bhaskar' and Mohammed Tanveer, editor of 'Tanveer Post' as well as Prashant Uma Rao of Thoothukudi for spreading fake news. A special team had been formed to nab them, he said, adding that more people who were involved in this are being apprehended and arrested. The DGP also warned that those spreading fake news would have to serve a maximum jail term of seven years.

While the editor of Dainik Bhaskar has been booked under sections IPC Sections 153 (A) and 50s(ixb) by the Tirupur north police station, the Tirupur cyber crime police have invoked sections 153 (b), 505 (iix b) and 55(d) of the IT Act against Mohammed Tanveer. Similarly, the Thoothukudi police have slapped sections 153, 153 (a), 504, 505(1) (b), 505 (1(c) and 505 (2) of the IPC against Prashant Uma Rao.

Since Friday evening, the state police have been in firefighting mode issuing public notices in Hindi to reassure the workers from north India. While the state police posted a series of tweets, Collectors of districts with high concentrations of migrant workers too issued statements in Hindi. The Tirupur Superintendent of Police pacified agitated migrant workers who were protesting over the death of one Sanjeev Sharma from the north, who was hit by a train. Later he monitored the security arrangements at the railway station. Similarly, in Chennai, the Deputy Commissioner of Police of Tambaram, interacted with the labourers who had gathered in hundreds to return back home for Holi.

According to police, the Holi festival is the reason for the rush of migrants from the north in railway stations. Migrant labourers are mostly concentrated in Coimbatore, the industrial hub of the state, and Tirupur, the hosiery capital of the country. Due to the paucity of the workforce in the agricultural sector, workers from Bengal and other northern states are also engaged in paddy transplantation and harvesting besides other farm-related work. Even in small towns, labourers from the north are engaged in construction work besides hotels and tea shops.