The petition, initiated by N. Panneerselvam, activist and advocate of Samooga Neethi Katchi (Social Justice Party), argues that the Coimbatore Corporation had previously approved a resolution on September 24, 2007, for the statue at Red Cross junction, but the City Police have persistently withheld permission.
Coimbatore: The ongoing issue regarding the lack of a public statue of B.R. Ambedkar in Coimbatore has escalated, prompting involvement from the National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC). The commission has demanded reports from the Coimbatore District Collector, Kranthi Kumar Pati, and the City Police Commissioner concerning a petition highlighting the continued denial of permission for the statue's installation.
The action taken reports are to be submitted to the NCSC within 15 days of receiving the notice. The petition, initiated by N. Panneerselvam, activist and advocate of Samooga Neethi Katchi (Social Justice Party), argues that the Coimbatore Corporation had previously approved a resolution on September 24, 2007, for the statue at Red Cross junction, but the City Police have persistently withheld permission.
Panneerselvam points to the disparity in treatment, noting that while Ambedkar's statue faces obstructions, life-size statues of ex-Chief Ministers J. Jayalalithaa and M.G. Ramachandran were erected on Avinashi Road in 2017 under the AIADMK regime. This selective permission has stirred discussions on discrimination and 'neo-untouchability', according to S. Balamurugan, national secretary of the People’s Union for Civil Liberty, highlighting a larger issue of inequality in public commemorations.
The action taken reports are to be submitted to the NCSC within 15 days of receiving the notice. The petition, initiated by N. Panneerselvam, activist and advocate of Samooga Neethi Katchi (Social Justice Party), argues that the Coimbatore Corporation had previously approved a resolution on September 24, 2007, for the statue at Red Cross junction, but the City Police have persistently withheld permission.
Panneerselvam points to the disparity in treatment, noting that while Ambedkar's statue faces obstructions, life-size statues of ex-Chief Ministers J. Jayalalithaa and M.G. Ramachandran were erected on Avinashi Road in 2017 under the AIADMK regime. This selective permission has stirred discussions on discrimination and 'neo-untouchability', according to S. Balamurugan, national secretary of the People’s Union for Civil Liberty, highlighting a larger issue of inequality in public commemorations.