PK Balachandran in Email Note to Roberts, late July 2023, … with highlighting being my imposition
The RSS has begun exploiting the Tamil issue to spread its Hindutwa ideology. The idea is to win over the Lankan Tamils to its side by discrediting the secular Tamil identity in SL. None of the speakers listed has any knowledge of the Lankan Tamil issue. Tamil Nadu BJP leader K.Annamalai has already visited Sri Lanka and is trying to put up an RSS-BJP unit here. Very dangerous development. The Sri Lankan government should make certain that Sarath Weerasekara and the monks don’t do anything anti-Hindu. It is sad that this ís happening when India-Lankan relations are improving thanks to the correct policies of Modi and Ranil.
A NOTE by Michael Roberts
PK Balachandran was based in Colombo as a journalist for some Indian chain when I was visiting Sri Lanka regularly through the 1990s and 2000s. We met on sseveral occasions in pursuit of common interests.”Bala” has always been grounded, non-communal and commited to moderate politics. We Sri Lankans must take note of this early note of warning about Indian chauvinist elements pressing claims against our land in the here and now.
COMMENT via EMAIL from Dr Muttukrishna SARAVNANATHAN, 28 jULY 2023
Indeed, many heads of educational institutions in India have been vocal supporters of ,or involved in, the national government. Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit, for example, was named the Vice Chancellor of Jawaharlal Nehru University early last year, and has voiced support for the ruling BJP party as well as calling for a “China-style” persecution of left-leaning voices. Rupinder Tewari, a previous candidate for the vice-chancellor post in Panjab University, alleged that only BJP-affiliated candidates were called in for the interview.
The Panjab University did not respond to multiple requests for comment from Undark.
