The Evening Wrap: T.N. Governor dismisses Senthilbalaji from Council of Ministers

In an unprecedented action, Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on June 29 evening “dismissed” V. Senthilbalaji from the Council of Ministers with immediate effect. Senthilbalaji was arrested earlier this month by the ED in an alleged money laundering case. A communication from the Raj Bhavan said, there were “reasonable apprehensions that continuation of Thiru V. Senthilbalaji in the Council of Ministers will adversely impact the due process of law including fair investigation that may eventually lead to breakdown of the Constitutional machinery in the State.” The Governor had earlier “disagreed” with Chief Minister M K Stalin’s decision to retain Senthilbalaji as a Minister without portfolio while reallocating his Electricity, Prohibition, Excise and Molases to two other senior Ministers. The Raj Bhavan said abusing his position as a Minister, Senthilbalaji has been influencing the investigation and obstructing the due process of law and justice. Congress slams BJP government for stopping Rahul Gandhi’s motorcade in Manipur Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Manipur aims to provide a healing touch and follows the spirit of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress said on June 29 as it accused the BJP government in the State of using “autocratic methods” to stop his motorcade from reaching the violence-affected district of Churachandpur. Though Gandhi’s motorcade was initially given permission, local police officials said that they had to stop it after an assessment that grenades could be thrown at the VIP motorcade, and so advised the leader to take the aerial route. Gandhi eventually took a chopper to land at Churachandpur. “He [Rahul Gandhi] is going there to meet the people suffering in relief camps and to provide a healing touch in the strife-torn state. PM Modi has not bothered to break his silence on Manipur. He has left the state to fend for itself. Now, his double engine disastrous governments are using autocratic methods to stall a compassionate outreach by Shri Rahul Gandhi. This is totally unacceptable and shatters all Constitutional and Democratic norms,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge tweeted. Congress general secretary (communication) Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “The Prime Minister may choose to remain silent or be inactive but why stop Rahul Gandhi’s efforts to listen to all sections of the Manipuri society and provide a healing touch?” Party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra tweeted to say that “it is the duty of every patriot to try and work for peace and harmony”. Congress general secretary, organisation, K.C. Venugopal, who accompanied Mr. Gandhi, said, “After initially allowing us, our convoy led by Rahul Gandhi was stalled near Bishnupur on the orders of the Manipur CM.” One killed as ‘rioters’ open unprovoked firing in Manipur’s Kangpokpi One person was killed and a few others were injured when “rioters” opened fire without any provocation at Haraothel village in Kangpokpi district of Manipur on June 29 morning, leading to tension in the area. While the local army unit tweeted that “unconfirmed reports” indicated some casualties in the incident, official sources said one body had been recovered from the area and a few others could be seen lying on the ground. It was not immediately clear whether they were dead or injured as intermittent firing was still going on in the area, the official sources said. Giving details, the official Twitter handle of the army, operating in the region, said armed rioters opened unprovoked firing at 5.30 am. “Own troops deployed in the area immediately mobilised to prevent escalation of situation. While enroute to the site, own columns drew effective fire from armed rioters,” the official “Spear Corps” handle of the army said. It said the troops “responded in a calibrated manner to prevent any collateral damage. Swift action by troops resulted in cessation of firing. “Additional columns moved to the area. Unconfirmed reports indicate some casualties. Build up of large crowds in the area also reported. Situation being closely monitored and further details will follow,” it said. France unrest | Riots spread, police officer charged with shooting teenager dead President Emmanuel Macron battled to contain a mounting crisis on June 29 after riots spread across France overnight, set off by the deadly police shooting of a teenager of North African descent during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb. Police made 150 arrests during a second night of unrest, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said, as public anger spilled onto the streets in towns and cities across the country. Macron held a crisis meeting with senior Ministers over the shooting, an incident which has fed long-standing complaints of police violence and systemic racism inside law enforcement agencies from rights groups and within the low-income, racially mixed suburbs that ring major cities in France. The shooting of the 17-year-old took place in Nanterre, on the western outskirts of Paris. The local prosecutor said investigative magistrates had placed the officer involved under formal investigation for voluntary homicide. A video shared on social media, verified by Reuters, shows two police officers beside a Mercedes AMG car, with one shooting at the teenage driver at close range as he pulled away. He died shortly afterwards from his wounds, the local prosecutor said. The teenager, who was too young to hold a full license in France, was driving illegally, a source familiar with the investigation said. The Nanterre prosecutor said he was known to police for previously failing to comply with a traffic stop order. Some 2,000 police fanned out across the Paris region last night. In Nanterre, a trail of overturned vehicles burned as protesters peppered police lines with fireworks. Police also clashed with protesters in the northern city of Lille and in Toulouse in the southwest, and there was unrest in Amiens, Dijon as well as in numerous districts throughout the greater Paris region, the authorities said. 40,000 policemen will be deployed across France on June 29 evening, the Interior Minister told reporters. In brief Uttar Pradesh Police on June 29 registered a FIR at the Deoband police station in Saharanpur district in connection with June 28 incident in which Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad was shot at by unidentified assailants in the Deoband area. Azad’s condition was stable, police said. The FIR has been lodged based on the complaint of Chandrashekhar’s accomplice, Manish Kumar. According to the FIR, provisions of offences under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) Act has been imposed along with the charges of attempt to murder against the attackers. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 29 June 2023 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( T.N. Governor dismisses Senthilbalaji from Council of Ministers In an unprecedented action, [Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on June 29 evening “dismissed” V. Senthilbalaji from the Council of Ministers]( with immediate effect. Senthilbalaji was arrested earlier this month by the ED in an alleged money laundering case. A communication from the Raj Bhavan said, there were “reasonable apprehensions that continuation of Thiru V. Senthilbalaji in the Council of Ministers will adversely impact the due process of law including fair investigation that may eventually lead to breakdown of the Constitutional machinery in the State.” The Governor had earlier “disagreed” with Chief Minister M K Stalin’s decision to retain Senthilbalaji as a Minister without portfolio while reallocating his Electricity, Prohibition, Excise and Molases to two other senior Ministers. The Raj Bhavan said abusing his position as a Minister, Senthilbalaji has been influencing the investigation and obstructing the due process of law and justice. Congress slams BJP government for stopping Rahul Gandhi’s motorcade in Manipur [Rahul Gandhi’s visit to Manipur aims to provide a healing touch and follows the spirit of the Bharat Jodo Yatra, the Congress said on June 29 as it accused the BJP government in the State of using “autocratic methods” to stop his motorcade]( from reaching the violence-affected district of Churachandpur. Though Gandhi’s motorcade was initially given permission, local police officials said that they had to stop it after an assessment that grenades could be thrown at the VIP motorcade, and so advised the leader to take the aerial route. Gandhi eventually took a chopper to land at Churachandpur. “He [Rahul Gandhi] is going there to meet the people suffering in relief camps and to provide a healing touch in the strife-torn state. PM Modi has not bothered to break his silence on Manipur. He has left the state to fend for itself. Now, his double engine disastrous governments are using autocratic methods to stall a compassionate outreach by Shri Rahul Gandhi. This is totally unacceptable and shatters all Constitutional and Democratic norms,” Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge tweeted. Congress general secretary (communication) Jairam Ramesh tweeted, “The Prime Minister may choose to remain silent or be inactive but why stop Rahul Gandhi’s efforts to listen to all sections of the Manipuri society and provide a healing touch?” Party general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra tweeted to say that “it is the duty of every patriot to try and work for peace and harmony”. Congress general secretary, organisation, K.C. Venugopal, who accompanied Mr. Gandhi, said, “After initially allowing us, our convoy led by Rahul Gandhi was stalled near Bishnupur on the orders of the Manipur CM.” One killed as ‘rioters’ open unprovoked firing in Manipur’s Kangpokpi [One person was killed and a few others were injured when “rioters” opened fire without any provocation at Haraothel village in Kangpokpi district of Manipur]( on June 29 morning, leading to tension in the area. While the local army unit tweeted that “unconfirmed reports” indicated some casualties in the incident, official sources said one body had been recovered from the area and a few others could be seen lying on the ground. It was not immediately clear whether they were dead or injured as intermittent firing was still going on in the area, the official sources said. Giving details, the official Twitter handle of the army, operating in the region, said armed rioters opened unprovoked firing at 5.30 am. “Own troops deployed in the area immediately mobilised to prevent escalation of situation. While enroute to the site, own columns drew effective fire from armed rioters,” the official “Spear Corps” handle of the army said. It said the troops “responded in a calibrated manner to prevent any collateral damage. Swift action by troops resulted in cessation of firing. “Additional columns moved to the area. Unconfirmed reports indicate some casualties. Build up of large crowds in the area also reported. Situation being closely monitored and further details will follow,” it said. France unrest | Riots spread, police officer charged with shooting teenager dead [President Emmanuel Macron battled to contain a mounting crisis on June 29 after riots spread across France overnight]( set off by the deadly police shooting of a teenager of North African descent during a traffic stop in a Paris suburb. Police made 150 arrests during a second night of unrest, Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin said, as public anger spilled onto the streets in towns and cities across the country. Macron held a crisis meeting with senior Ministers over the shooting, an incident which has fed long-standing complaints of police violence and systemic racism inside law enforcement agencies from rights groups and within the low-income, racially mixed suburbs that ring major cities in France. The shooting of the 17-year-old took place in Nanterre, on the western outskirts of Paris. The local prosecutor said investigative magistrates had placed the officer involved under formal investigation for voluntary homicide. A video shared on social media, verified by Reuters, shows two police officers beside a Mercedes AMG car, with one shooting at the teenage driver at close range as he pulled away. He died shortly afterwards from his wounds, the local prosecutor said. The teenager, who was too young to hold a full license in France, was driving illegally, a source familiar with the investigation said. The Nanterre prosecutor said he was known to police for previously failing to comply with a traffic stop order. Some 2,000 police fanned out across the Paris region last night. In Nanterre, a trail of overturned vehicles burned as protesters peppered police lines with fireworks. Police also clashed with protesters in the northern city of Lille and in Toulouse in the southwest, and there was unrest in Amiens, Dijon as well as in numerous districts throughout the greater Paris region, the authorities said. 40,000 policemen will be deployed across France on June 29 evening, the Interior Minister told reporters. In brief [Uttar Pradesh Police on June 29 registered a FIR at the Deoband police station in Saharanpur district in connection with June 28 incident in which Bhim Army chief Chandrashekhar Azad was shot at by unidentified assailants]( in the Deoband area. Azad’s condition was stable, police said. The FIR has been lodged based on the complaint of Chandrashekhar’s accomplice, Manish Kumar. According to the FIR, provisions of offences under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) Act has been imposed along with the charges of attempt to murder against the attackers. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. 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