No time for celebrations

The recession is over,but for politicians it is not yet time to celebrate their birthdays as they used to.

The recession is over,but for politicians it is not yet time to celebrate their birthdays as they used to. AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalithaa and DMKs prince-in-waiting M K Stalin directed the cadres not to celebrate their birthdays with pomp,something that has been associated with the politicos in the state. Jaya instructed her partymen not to celebrate her birthday,which was on February 24,at a time when the state was suffering under the misrule of DMK. Instead,she directed the cadres to organise blood donation camps,mass feeding of the poor and offer medical assistance to the needy. The only sign of celebration was the cutting of a 62- kg cake,signifying her age,by the second-rung leaders. Stalin,who celebrated his birthday on March 1,passed a strict request to the cadres not to put up hordings,posters or full-page advertisements in the print media.

New kid on the cine block

A lot has been said about the connection between the Tamil Nadu politicians and filmdom. Most of these reports concerned the sons of Union minister M K Azhagiri and Deputy CM M K Stalin,launching their own production houses. Now there is a new kid on the block. J Anbazhagan,a former MLA and Stalin acolyte,has stepped into film production after spending the past few years in politics. Anbazhagan,who lost the 2006 Assembly polls,is the South Chennai district secretary of the party. After dabbling in film distribution,he is all set to become a producer with a film made by award-winning director Ameer. The budget is yet to be disclosed though Ameer was quoted as saying that he was looking for someone who could support a big movie.

Conspiracy theory

Senior Marxist leader W R Varada Rajan died weeks ago but the dust finally settled only on Monday when the post-mortem report showed that his death was caused by drowning. There were several theories floating around about the cause of death,ranging from party factionalism to family problems. Even Chief Minister M Karunanidhi took care to insert a line in his condolence message,suggesting that the death remained a mystery. The latest was an exclusive by Makkal TV,a channel from the PMK stable,which alleged that the leader was strangled before the body was dumped in the lake. The report suggested this was due to groupism in the party,an allegation that instigated the comrades to attack the television channels office.

PM visit due,cops cautious

A group of youths,all hailing from Kashmir,were detained by the Chennai police on Monday after they failed to give conclusive replies to the questions asked by the police. Even as the police admit that language is a barrier for both parties,these persons were thoroughly questioned about their purpose of visit,mode of travel and other details. The reason: a host of dignitaries from the President to the PM are visiting Chennai in a few days to attend the inauguration of the newly-constructed Assembly complex,and the state police are literally looking under every stone to prevent any untoward incidents. The Kashmiris maintained that they were cloth and carpet traders. They were let off after questioning.