- 5 minutes ago
Bengaluru authorities have uncovered a counterfeit medicine network involving Krupa Healthcare at Minerva Circle, which supplied spurious cancer medications and life-saving ICU injections to more than 90 hospitals and clinics. The Karnataka Health Department and a Special Investigation Team have initiated an investigation to apprehend the key operative based in Azerbaijan, while medical experts call for QR code tracking on pharmaceutical supplies. In another development in Bengaluru, the proposed screening of a documentary on activist Umar Khalid at the National Law School of India University triggered protests from the ABVP and counter-statements from Congress leaders. Meanwhile, a Christian delegation led by Archbishop Peter Machado met Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge to present demands regarding anti-conversion legislation and reservation status. The report also covers ongoing political friction between the DMK and TVK in Tamil Nadu, including breach-of-privilege notices and international investment discussions.
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NewsTranscript
00:00The worst kind of scam has been busted in Bengaluru.
00:05Fake cancer drugs, fake ICU medications, fake injections
00:10found to be distributed in several hundred hospitals in the city.
00:15So essentially, life-saving medicines given to some of the most needy patients
00:19and after shelling out, I'm not exaggerating,
00:22lax for just a few doses, all of that completely useless.
00:26The suspicion is that more than 90 hospitals and clinics
00:29across the city of Bengaluru were actually supplied
00:31with these counterfeit medications.
00:34And let's show you the man behind this racket.
00:37That's the man there.
00:37He's a pharmacy owner and there's a reason we want to name and shame him today
00:42because he's the one who's treated so many patients
00:45across the city of Bengaluru and he's part of a network
00:47that was supplying these fake cancer medicines,
00:50life-saving drugs and ICU injections to hospitals, clinics and medical shops,
00:54all of it reportedly at discounts.
00:56He's just one off an entire network that's still being busted.
01:02Let's be clear that this is the worst kind of betrayal,
01:05the worst kind of racket.
01:07It's also, however, a reminder that absolutely nothing is spared in this country,
01:11nothing is safe, not even supposedly life-saving drugs.
01:14And how can any of us honestly tell if the medicines now we're taking
01:17is safe or not?
01:18We're not experts in the matter.
01:20What a doctor prescribes, we take.
01:22When a patient pays lax for cancer treatment,
01:25this isn't an expense on luxury.
01:28They're buying time.
01:29They're buying a chance to live.
01:31And these monsters have snatched that away from them,
01:34turning that desperation into a business opportunity.
01:38Like I said, this is still being investigated.
01:41So we still don't know the depths of this racket,
01:44if there are other cities or also where we're seeing a similar situation play out.
01:48And how would any of us know?
01:52In a major crackdown by Karnataka Health Department and special investigation team
01:57formed by the Karnataka government to crackdown on fake medicines and drugs
02:03had created multiple places across the state.
02:06And one such place is Kripa Healthcare in Minerva Circle in Bengaluru.
02:11Right now, this particular healthcare has been shut down and seized.
02:15According to polis, this particular Kripa Healthcare used to rebrand low-cost cancer medicine.
02:23Not only rebranding, they used to relabel expired medicines
02:28and used to supply to all the hospitals, medical shops and clinics.
02:34And what they used to is, they used to collect all these medicines here in boxes like this.
02:40And thereafter, they used to rebrand here inside this particular healthcare office.
02:47And from here, they used to supply across the state at a 50% discount.
02:53Remember, 50% discount of all these fake medicines.
02:58Police also verifying documents and the invoices that have been collected
03:05and trying to crack the network chain involved in this particular major fake cancer medicine racket.
03:15With you, Rajal Shivu, Sagaraj, reporting for India Today, Bengaluru.
03:20Absolutely shocking.
03:21Nearly 100 hospitals, clinics in the city of Bengaluru.
03:25They are still mapping those out, by the way, to identify which received this.
03:29It's impossible to tell how many patients were affected.
03:31It's impossible to tell which ones really consumed these fake medicines.
03:36Joining me on this broadcast is Dr. Vishal Rao,
03:38an oncologist at the HCG Cancer Center based in Bengaluru.
03:43So you can imagine, really, how doctors too in the city are feeling about what's happening.
03:47Seeing these details, Dr. Rao, emerge now of a racket
03:50in which so many of these hospitals were supplied with fake drugs.
03:54As an oncologist, as someone who treats these cancer patients,
03:58your first reaction?
04:01Namaste.
04:02I think what has come to light is something very alarming, very disturbing,
04:09and I'm sure this must be something that should be immediately curbed
04:14and something where strict enforcement should take precedence.
04:20I personally feel this is something which is such a deep-rooted racket which needs to be...
04:28We need to go to the depth of this investigation because from the manufacturer to the distributor
04:35to the retailer or a hospital, I think somewhere a complete chain of trust has been broken,
04:43a chain of regulatory structure has been broken, and even a complete chain of structured protocols
04:53has been broken.
04:54How could some...
04:57from the manufacturing unit to logistics to distributor, how is it that it's possible
05:04that the batches and the wires completely change and fake drugs enter the market?
05:10which means that a hospital where I'm working in, if I'm giving the drug to a patient,
05:16I myself as a doctor do not know if it's real or not.
05:20Now, that's a very, very sad situation for a doctor, for a patient, and for a hospital.
05:24So, somewhere I think this is the kind of a situation wherein the regulatory needs to step up,
05:32create a proper electronic tool system like barcoding or QR codes
05:38which ensure that it has got a trail, an electronic trail for authenticity
05:44to ensure that even end users, they are feeling safe as doctors and patients.
05:50I think it's, you know, it's shocking, honestly, gives you such a sense of fear
05:55that even hospitals are not safe from these kind of rackets.
05:58But I want to understand from you, Dr. Rao, how dangerous are these fake cancer drugs for patients?
06:05What kind of harm are we talking about?
06:08Is it just a question of being ineffective?
06:10Is it a lot more serious than that?
06:15So, I think this is a complete disaster.
06:18I personally would believe that if you're giving fake drugs,
06:22and I'm saying you're talking about critical illness drugs, ICU drugs, drugs that are related to cancer.
06:30Now, these, every single door in our books, for us, each of them is life-saving.
06:39Every single door actually is able to move the patient to a cure,
06:45and if it is safe, it's as good as the plexibor.
06:49That means the cancer has a chance to spread and even threaten a person's life.
06:54So, the accountability question comes very significantly over here
06:59because this patient somewhere who is working, who is receiving this kind of drugs.
07:07Now, typically, if you say in solid tumor, that is like lung cancer, bone cancer,
07:12hedonic cancer, other cancer, we give chemotherapy in very advanced stages,
07:17and in leukemias and others, they are the mainstream of treatments.
07:22Imagine, in any stage of cancer, if the drug is not effective,
07:27that means it's like the next dose of therapy we give after three to four weeks.
07:32We have delayed the treatment by a month, and in one month,
07:36it's good enough for the tumor to double spread or become incurable also.
07:41And I think that onus now needs to be taken by somebody if the patient has received it.
07:47And that pushes the patient more towards the chances of no cure
07:52or towards chances of complication.
07:55And hence, it's very, very important that we do not take this matter lightly.
08:00No, you're right, that, you know, I hope they get to the root of whatever the scam is,
08:05whoever is involved, because the suspicion is that this is a massive network.
08:09But also, Dr. Rao, you know, how you've highlighted what this means for a cancer patient
08:14who's, you know, fighting against time, essentially to ensure that they get better, buy more time.
08:20And these are extremely, extremely expensive medicines.
08:23Some of them spend everything they've earned through their lives to get these dosages,
08:28to get these medications.
08:32And in Akshida, in today's unfortunate era of capital medicine, today it's not easy.
08:38People really spend heavy on insurances, heavy out-of-pocket expenditures,
08:44and even governments are spending very high amounts in their schemes in order to procure these drugs
08:50and ensure that they are able to move an inch towards cure,
08:54to giving somebody a five-year life survival or sometimes lesser.
08:59Every day matters in their lives.
09:01And in this kind of a situation, we need to take this into the much larger picture.
09:07And if this is the story of Bengaluru,
09:10then I'm not sure what's the story in other states where vigilance and monitoring are still more worse.
09:16What could be the scale of fraud, what could be the scale of such kind of fake activities
09:22and who all could be involved in this?
09:24So this is something that should be really investigated at the highest level
09:28and the punishment for such kind of activity should be detrimental.
09:33No, but I have to ask this as well, Dr. Rao.
09:36You know, when we speak of accountability
09:38and the checks and balances in place right now in the country,
09:42how feasible is it for hospitals to step in here
09:45to verify the authenticity and quality of every drug that they procure,
09:49particularly these high-cost, life-saving medicines?
09:54So I think one learning lesson from this incident is
09:59a distributor who has been now held responsible for this particular thing
10:05has supplied it to the hospital.
10:06It's very important here that distributors' validation,
10:11that means every hospital knows their distributors' reputation, licenses,
10:16regularly reviews it,
10:18and governments also ensure high time that QR codes or barcoding
10:25is done from the point of manufacturing to the point of retailer
10:29to ensure that at the point of hospitals with a simple QR code,
10:33I can check if it's fake or not.
10:35Today, in the era of AI,
10:38today, we know there are so many easily software available
10:41that can just quickly scan and tell if something is authentic or not
10:45in other areas of consumer products.
10:49So why not in such an important area that we implement it?
10:53And I think that's the need of the hour that I see, one.
10:56Second, I would also add to say that
10:59it cannot just be a distributor in this.
11:02It has to be a complete nexus.
11:05It cannot be done by one single distributor.
11:07No, 100%.
11:08My understanding, this could be because you have to change the badges,
11:11you have to take those medicines out,
11:13then you have to fill in new medicines.
11:14That must be a complete, I would say,
11:18a complete mafia of a nexus
11:21that is a very well-structured ecosystem
11:24that is doing this regularly.
11:26You know, you're right.
11:28I don't think this is a Bengaluru problem.
11:30It's been busted in Bengaluru.
11:31But unfortunately, this could happen across
11:34and could be happening really across the country.
11:37But I have to also ask, Dr. Rao,
11:39is this an India problem,
11:41that there's a lack of regulation,
11:42there are these loopholes
11:43that these kind of scammers, racketeers,
11:45are able to go ahead and exploit?
11:48Would you ever see anything like this anywhere else
11:50in any other country?
11:55My take on this is,
11:57today, if you see that the Western countries
12:00have learned and become so tight in regulatory
12:03because they see the possibility of all of these
12:06and preempt it.
12:08Whereas, sometimes in our country,
12:12we have the best laws,
12:14but our implementation is very poor.
12:16So what happens to us is,
12:18we end up reacting every time a situation
12:20blows up and it comes to the notice.
12:23And this has happened earlier also.
12:25So I think we need to now look at understanding
12:29and preempting such kind of situations
12:31where it's not a loophole, it's a manhole.
12:34There's clear evidence that this kind of a thing,
12:36when there is such loose chains of logistics,
12:40transportation, shifting, unreliable distributors,
12:44loose distributors, unregistered distributors,
12:48there's a possibility of so many leakages here.
12:51In such a situation,
12:52the regulator needs to take more stringent coherence
12:56and more stringent cognizance
12:58to ensure that there is a tight-locked system
13:02like they do for narcotic drugs.
13:04So I think it's a good eye-opener for us to,
13:08for the regulatory to ensure that this doesn't happen again.
13:12That's right.
13:12Dr. Rao, thank you for joining us.
13:14I think this story particularly is extremely disturbing
13:18and kind of reflects how in India,
13:21nothing, nothing is sacred.
13:23There's absolutely nothing that you can 100% watch for
13:26and say this is clean.
13:27This is in fact something that we can go ahead and take,
13:30that we know for sure is not going to be tampered with,
13:33is not part of some sort of a racket,
13:35is not fake, is not expired.
13:37You know, we talk of a food crackdown.
13:39Imagine this, your medication also has deep issues.
13:42We've seen this being spoken of,
13:43of, you know, pain relievers, of painkiller medications
13:46and this is a whole different level
13:48where it's cancer drugs, where it's ICU medication,
13:51life-saving drugs essentially.
13:53The Karnataka Health Minister has reacted.
13:55Let's get you that news break.
14:03So, the State Health Minister U.T. Khadir has spoken out
14:06and has confirmed that the Karnataka government
14:08will do everything to nab all of the accused in this case
14:12and SIT has been formed to look into this case.
14:15Zero tolerance towards such incidents is the message
14:19that's come in from the State Health Minister.
14:21Right now, the kingpin of this racket is reportedly abroad in Azerbaijan
14:27and so efforts are being made by the State to bring him back
14:30and ensure that everyone who's a part of this racket is identified.
14:37We are formed in SIT.
14:39Karnataka is the first one to crack such a big scam
14:41and form an SIT on the drug mafia.
14:45And the SIT consists of the police department,
14:48the home department,
14:49and our drug and safety department plus the commercial tax also
14:52because we should not see from where they started the vouchers, everything.
14:56So, the enquiry is going on.
14:58Let the SIT report comes
15:00and then there will be a zero tolerance.
15:03No one will be spared in our states.
15:06And I already have written a letter to the central minister also.
15:09So, send a team of the central drug safety officers
15:13to the state to look after this.
15:17Sagaraj is joining me live from Bengaluru with more details on this.
15:21Sagaraj, run us through the network that's been busted so far.
15:24How many of the accused have been identified, taken into custody?
15:27Because the kingpin we hear is actually in Azerbaijan.
15:34See, police have arrested the person who was handling that Krupa healthcare farm in Bengaluru.
15:41He's the one who was relabeling the expired products
15:46and he's the one who was selling those medicines to all the medical shops,
15:53clinics and the hospitals at 50% discount prices.
15:57So, through him, they have found out a huge network.
16:01They have collated documents as well as the invoices from that particular form.
16:06So, they are verifying the network.
16:09As our guest was talking about this particular fake medicine racket,
16:14probably it has been busted in Karnataka.
16:16Probably it would have spread across the country.
16:18So, that is the reason that SIT is looking into all aspects.
16:22They want to connect the dots, connect the people
16:25and that's when they can establish who are the people behind this particular huge racket.
16:30And Prashant, who is the kingpin behind this particular mafia, is in Azerbaijan
16:36and his visa has expired on September 9th.
16:39But still, he is overstaying.
16:41There is already a lookout notice which has been issued by the SIT.
16:44CID is a protocol office here in Karnataka which can recommend a lookout notice through MEA
16:50and as of now, they have approached the MEA
16:54and probably they will bring him back in this particular case
16:57and he will be an important arrest if at all that happens anytime soon.
17:01Sagar, just a quick follow-up question
17:03which is also on the hospitals where these fake drugs were supplied.
17:07Have they been able to identify all of the hospitals
17:09because we understand there is about 90 of them in the city.
17:12Have they been able to identify and pull these fake drugs off the shelves if that's possible?
17:21Now, SIT have all the information
17:23so they have to verify with the documents they have collected in this particular raid.
17:28So, so far they have not revealed the names.
17:30In fact, they have not released the photograph of a kingpin who is absconding Azerbaijan.
17:34They said that he might flee, he might be cautious.
17:37So, keeping all these things in their mind, it is a secret operation which is going on.
17:41Remember, Akshita, it is quite a sensitive issue because this involves medicine
17:45and it has been supplied to hospital clinics and medical stores
17:48and if at all, if they release all these details at one time,
17:52probably there might be a huge panic amongst the people,
17:54where they have to go, what they have to do, how to address
17:57and what are the medicines that they have consumed,
17:59whether this medicine is fake or genuine.
18:01So, a lot of questions might be raised.
18:03So, the police is taking a cautious move in this particular investigation.
18:07So far, they have not revealed whatever the information that we get,
18:10that is also on source based.
18:12So, we are waiting probably an announcement from the police
18:16as well as the health department to understand the network,
18:19where they have supplied, how they have supplied
18:21and who are the people behind this
18:23or it is just two people or it is a huge network across the country
18:26which is operating.
18:27All right. Thanks, Agai, for those details.
18:29For obvious reasons, people will be panicking in the city
18:33but the police are saying, you know, we're cracking down,
18:35we're identifying the hospital's clinics that had these fake drugs
18:38and working on removing it from the shelves.
18:40Let's move on and talk about another controversy playing out in Bengaluru.
18:45This is over an Umar Khalid documentary.
18:48It was all said to be played in a university campus.
18:50The ABVP has been objecting to the same
18:53even as the Congress-backed student group NSUI
18:56has in fact pushed for the screening to go ahead.
18:59Amid this, it's also turned extremely political
19:02because you have had the Karnataka Congress Chief B.K. Hari Prasad
19:05defending the call to screen the documentary
19:08referring to Umar Khalid as a nationalist.
19:20It's been six years since Umar Khalid was arrested
19:23in connection with the 2020 Delhi riots
19:26under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act
19:29and provisions of the Indian Penal Court.
19:31His trial is yet to conclude
19:34while several of his bail pleas have been rejected or deferred.
19:37For the left, Khalid has become a symbol of resistance.
19:42For the right, he remains one of their biggest political targets.
19:47And now, a documentary on Khalid has landed
19:50right in the middle of this political crossfire.
19:54Prisoner number 626710 is present.
19:57The 2024 documentary on Umar Khalid
20:01was scheduled to be screened
20:02at Bengaluru's National Law School of India University
20:05on the sixth anniversary of his arrest.
20:08But before the screening, the AVVP stepped in.
20:12The BJP student wing urged the centre
20:14to direct the university management
20:16to permanently revoke all permissions
20:19for the documentary to be filmed,
20:21screened or promoted on campus
20:23under any pretext.
20:24The student outfit wrote to four union ministers
20:27seeking action against the screening of the film.
20:31So we have come to know that there has been a programme
20:34going on, which was actually planned yesterday
20:36on Umar Khalid.
20:39We have written a letter,
20:40actually we have mailed a letter
20:41to union law minister, home minister
20:43and education minister
20:44demanding an inquiry into the matter.
20:48They have been promoting this event
20:50who are actually studying in LSIU.
20:53That clearly suggests that there has been involvement
20:55of those anti-national elements in NLSI.
21:00The Congress, meanwhile, has hit back,
21:02accusing the AVVP and RSS of hypocrisy.
21:05The party called Khalid a nationalist.
21:09The AVVP has got no moral right to speak on
21:13what the NHJ wants to do.
21:16When AVVP adores Nathuram Ghotse as a patriot,
21:21Umar Khalid is a true nationalist
21:23and every citizen has got all the right to show his
21:27whatever the film can be screened.
21:29Whoever in Madison Square,
21:32Mohan Bhagwat has clearly said,
21:34whoever who opposes a Muslim is not an Hindu.
21:38A documentary has once again triggered
21:40the larger right versus left battle.
21:43The political slugfest is only getting louder.
21:46But beyond the slogans,
21:48accusations and counter-accusations,
21:50one factor amaze.
21:52Umar Khalid is still behind bars.
21:55With Sagai Raj, Bureau Report, India Today.
22:05And there's a big political fight playing out
22:08over the Karnataka Congress Chief B.K. Hari Prasad's comment
22:11where he refers to Umar Khalid as a nationalist.
22:15It's over that that the AVVP,
22:17which has been at the heart of the protest
22:19against the screening of this documentary
22:20at the National Law School in Bengaluru,
22:23the AVVP has now called out B.K. Hari Prasad
22:26for the comment he's made on Umar Khalid,
22:28questioning how, in fact,
22:30someone who has, according to the AVVP,
22:33glorified Parliament attack terrorists
22:35can be referred to as a nationalist.
22:38So the AVVP lashing out
22:40and questioning Congress,
22:42asking if they stand by what B.K. Hari Prasad has said
22:44on labelling Umar Khalid as a nationalist.
22:48So the political fight continuing
22:49on this particular issue
22:51and questions being asked by the AVVP,
22:53the BJP of the Congress,
22:55on whether they endorse
22:56what the Karnataka Congress Chief has said,
22:58what B.K. Hari Prasad has said
22:59when he refers to Umar Khalid as a nationalist.
23:08Alright, as in fact we get you those details,
23:10let's move on to another story.
23:12And this is of members of the Christian community meeting
23:16with Malika Junkarge in Karnataka.
23:19What was this meeting about?
23:20There were two demands that were made, essentially.
23:22One, to repeal the anti-conversion law,
23:24which is there in Karnataka,
23:25brought in by the as-tweil BJP government.
23:28The second, the Christian community in Karnataka
23:30is also demanding quota, reservation,
23:341% reservation for the Christian community in Karnataka.
23:37It's led to, of course, a lot of politics.
23:40Let's get you all those reactions.
23:43Christian community delegation in Karnataka on Monday
23:46met Congress Chief Malika Junkarge
23:49and raised several long-standing concerns
23:51affecting the community.
23:57The group demanded a 1% quota in Karnataka,
24:00a larger share in government posts,
24:02and the repeal of legislation
24:04commonly known as the Anti-Conversion Act.
24:07The last demand has sparked a major political row.
24:12The delegation was led by the Archbishop of Bangalore,
24:16Peter Machado,
24:17and sought Karnataka's intervention
24:19and support in addressing these issues.
24:23It looks very bad.
24:25Why the BJP has suddenly to take up this issue?
24:29For centuries, the Christians and the minorities
24:32have been staying here.
24:34We make a request on behalf of the community
24:36that there are many, many poor people.
24:38There are many people who cannot get employment,
24:41who cannot get the benefits
24:43that the government is offering us.
24:45The Congress supported the Christian group's demand
24:48for the repeal of the Anti-Conversion Act,
24:50but did not back their quota demand.
24:54There is nothing wrong in the demand
24:56of the Christian community
24:57and what the representation
24:59they have given to the All India Congress Committee
25:01is a genuine one.
25:03Quota is purely on socially and educationally backward.
25:08and if I don't think so,
25:10law permits in the name of religion or the caste.
25:13The BJP, on the other hand,
25:15slammed the Congress,
25:16accusing it of playing appeasement politics.
25:20We have seen in the past,
25:22whether it is Christians,
25:24whether it is Muslims or anybody,
25:26they appease them as a vote bank.
25:29They want to make sure
25:30that the Sanatanis will not be there in India
25:33and they will be eradicated.
25:34And that is the Congress party.
25:37The law enacted by the previous BJP government
25:40prohibits unlawful religious conversions.
25:44Karnataka is not the only state
25:46where such a law has been introduced.
25:48Similar legislation has also been brought in
25:51by BJP governments in several other states.
25:55If the Congress repeats the law in Karnataka,
25:58as is widely expected,
25:59it could add another flashpoint
26:01between the BJP and the Congress.
26:03With Sagai Raj, Bureau Report, India Today.
26:10And let's give you a sense of really
26:13what the Christian community is seeking
26:14in that meeting with Malik Arjun Kargay
26:16versus what the law says
26:18on a couple of issues here.
26:19One is that they're seeking a 1%
26:21separate reservation for the community
26:23in Karnataka.
26:24Is that something that's possible?
26:25Well, the law clearly lays down
26:27the reservation on the basis of religion
26:29is something that cannot take place.
26:32So, this 1% reservation demand,
26:34very unlikely that anything can be done about it.
26:37They've asked for a greater share
26:38in education, in government jobs.
26:40That's what the reservation is about.
26:42Backwardness, what the law says is very clear.
26:45On the basis of religion, no.
26:46Backwardness must be proven with data.
26:49So, sometimes that may move towards
26:50one particular religion,
26:51has to be backed by figures of backwardness.
26:54Now, beyond that,
26:55they've also sought better
26:56political representation.
26:58There is nothing lawfully
27:00that in fact will state
27:01that someone from the Christian community
27:03must be in fact represented
27:05in political circles.
27:07So, political representation
27:08has completely different rules.
27:11Beyond that also,
27:12what in that particular meeting
27:14the Christian community
27:15and their delegation sought
27:16was the SE status
27:18for Dalit Christians.
27:20And why have they sought this?
27:21Because remember,
27:22the Christians have been excluded
27:24from the scheduled caste status
27:26based on the 1950 order.
27:28So, they're saying,
27:30go ahead and change that.
27:31Repeal of the anti-conversion law.
27:33This has been a big, big showdown,
27:34a big bone of contention in Karnataka,
27:36which is why the Christian community
27:38is up in arms against it.
27:39It was brought in by the PGP government.
27:41What the law states
27:42is that those who've converted to Christianity
27:44will lose their SE benefits.
27:47And that's what's led to a big showdown.
27:49Now, besides that,
27:51they've also, of course,
27:51sought for that very reason,
27:53SE benefits for Christian converts.
27:55The law, as I told you,
27:56doesn't allow that.
27:57But they have said that
27:59welfare schemes
27:59can still be given separately.
28:01There are, however,
28:02a bunch of terms and conditions
28:04that must be met
28:05for that to happen.
28:07So, that explains for you
28:08exactly why we're seeing
28:10the Christian community
28:11putting forth
28:11any or all of these demands.
28:13The BJP, however,
28:14saying that if any move
28:16is made towards
28:16addressing any of these demands,
28:18they will be up in arms.
28:20Let's move on
28:21and get your news now
28:22from Tamil Nadu
28:23where, unfortunately,
28:24the political discourse
28:25continues to hit
28:27the lowest of lows.
28:28When you think,
28:28just when you think
28:29that it can't get worse
28:31than what we've already seen,
28:32it goes ahead
28:33and does that.
28:34With comments being made
28:35about Chief Minister Vijay,
28:36about his family,
28:38about TVK ministers as well,
28:40senior DMK leaders
28:42are now in the dock
28:43for going ahead
28:44and making comments,
28:46abusive language,
28:47personal attacks
28:48below the belt remarks,
28:49they are now being pulled up
28:51one after another.
28:58Tamil Nadu's political battle
28:59has once again
29:01turned personal
29:01with Chief Minister Vijay,
29:03his family
29:04and even TVK ministers
29:06being dragged
29:06into a bitter war of words.
29:10The latest flashpoint,
29:12DMK MP A. Raja
29:13and former minister
29:14Sekar Babu
29:15face police cases
29:17over alleged derogatory remarks
29:19against Chief Minister Vijay
29:20and State Minister
29:21C.T. Nirmal Kumar.
29:23Raja allegedly questioned
29:25Nirmal Kumar's parentage.
29:50Sekar Babu
29:51went a step further
29:52using abusive language
29:53while attacking
29:54Chief Minister Vijay
29:55over the Misa Rao.
30:09D.M. K. Malay
30:18Vasantham Karthikyan
30:19too took a personal
30:20swipe at Vijay
30:22claiming TVK came to power
30:23on DMK votes
30:24and mocking his appearance.
30:42But the personal attacks
30:44don't end there.
30:45BJP State Chief
30:46Nainar Nagindran
30:48on Sunday
30:48questioned
30:49whether Vijay's UK trip
30:50was a personal visit
30:51with an actor.
31:10Earlier Nagindran
31:11had asked Vijay
31:12to ask his mother
31:13where his father was
31:14while DMK mouthpiece
31:16Murasoli
31:17took a swipe
31:18at Vijay
31:18over his association
31:19with actor Trisha.
31:21DMK Malay
31:22Anita Radhakrishnan
31:23had also questioned
31:24the absence
31:25of Vijay's wife
31:26and children
31:26at his oath ceremony.
31:28Muslim Leagues Minister
31:30Shah Jahan
31:31has condemned
31:31the remarks
31:32calling them
31:32extremely distressing
31:34and asking
31:35where is
31:35Tamil Nadu's
31:36politics heading.
31:59With personal lives
32:01increasingly becoming
32:02political ammunition
32:03has Tamil Nadu
32:04politics
32:05hit a new low?
32:07With Anika Keshav
32:09Bureau Report
32:09India Today.
32:17Now even as
32:18we're seeing
32:19the showdown
32:19between the DMK
32:20and the TVK
32:21remember that
32:22all of this
32:22was triggered
32:23by the comments
32:24being made
32:24by the TVK
32:25on the issue
32:26of MISA
32:26and on
32:27former Chief Minister
32:28Stalin.
32:29DMK MLA's
32:30have now handed
32:31over a letter
32:32to in fact
32:33the Speaker
32:34regarding
32:34a breach
32:35of privilege
32:36and this is
32:37against Minister
32:38CTR
32:39Nirmal Kumar.
32:39The reason is
32:41the DMK
32:42is complaining
32:43that
32:43information
32:44false information
32:45was given
32:46by the Minister
32:46in the Assembly
32:47about Kalainir
32:48Karunanuti.
32:49This comes after
32:50DMK Nethas
32:51themselves
32:52have been booked
32:52for derogatory
32:53remarks
32:53against CTR
32:54Nirmal Kumar.
32:55They targeted
32:56him because
32:56of the comments
32:57that he made
32:57on MISA
32:58on Kalainir
32:59Karunanuti
33:00as well.
33:14of the
33:17Nirmal Kumar.
33:44Thank you very much.
34:05Thank you very much.
34:25Thank you very much.
36:08Thank you very much for joining us with those details.
36:10I suspect we haven't seen the end of this controversy with both sides continuing to fire at each other on
36:15this particular issue.
37:08Now, while all of these announcements have been made, there have been questions raised.
37:12For example, on the EY proposition that I've just referred to, many suggesting that this was already done.
37:18This was in the pipeline.
37:19It's just a formal signing.
37:20The AIA-DMK has also questioned one investment that's come in from a company based on Noida.
37:25It's therefore accused the Chief Minister of wasting taxpayers' money by going all the way to London.
37:30And so, several questions being asked.
37:32The BJP has, in fact, questioned whether he's really gone there to attract investments.
37:39Yes, there are many people who have gone from India to London to sign an MOU.
37:45All these industries, they have around 12 to 12, 13 units in Tamil Nadu already, in various parts of India.
37:53Why should they go to London to sign that agreement?
37:57They should have signed it here itself.
38:01These are all, he's cheating the people, that's all.
38:07I have a lot of points for us, even though some of them have been done.
38:10But, it's all about sports.
38:13However, there are a lot of tournaments around sports.
38:16We have a lot of tournaments around this country that has been a lot of fun at this country.
38:27The most part of this country is it's a big part of the country.
38:30The common people in the world who have been here are a great part of the country.
38:32It's all about to have power in front of the country.
38:32The country does not fall for the country but have power to land here.
38:33The country has been an important one with power.
38:35That's what I see.
38:39There's been a raging debate over actor Vijay Sethupati's remarks as the host of Tamil Big Boss.
38:45Why? Because many of the comments he's been making are being interpreted as a subtle political taunt at Chief Minister
38:52Vijay.
38:53Vijay Sethupati in an episode speaks of leadership, about standing by one's promise and pledges.
38:59He says, without knowing what's being a leader or leadership, giving tall promises,
39:05but blaming the opposite team when a crisis breaks and running away is not a leadership quality, it's cheating.
39:13This particular reference, many have interpreted as a taunt at Chief Minister Vijay and his recent speech in the Assembly,
39:20which opposition parties deemed as an excuse tactic of blaming the DMK for every issue.
39:25So that was linked to this, to suggest that Vijay Sethupati was actually, in fact, sending across a message to
39:32Chief Minister Vijay.
39:33They worked together, by the way, in the Tamil film Master.
39:37All of the speculation peaked to such a great extent on social media that the broadcaster of the episode,
39:43ironically, the channel Vijay TV, had to issue a statement that no, none of the comments have to do with
39:49politics
39:49and that it's all completely fiction.
39:53Vijay Sethupati hasn't commented, but you can decide which way you want to see his comments.
40:07.
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40:07.
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40:11.
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