AIADMK mouthpiece editor Marudhu Alaguraj sacked after criticising BJP, Centre

After being critical of the Centre last week, the editor of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) newspaper Namadhu MGR, Marudhu Alaguraj, has been removed from his position, DNA reported on Wednesday. The report said that he was found to be acting against the policies of the party. [caption id=“attachment_3852067” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Representational images. AFP[/caption] However, an article in The Times of India said that he was not given any reason and that the party paper was given to VK Sasikala’s nephew Vivek for management. Vivek is said to have noticed the ‘black sheep’ that brought the party a bad name. Alaguraj told ANI that he had been dismissed for his article on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Tamil Nadu-led-EPS government.After the incident, he blamed the prime minister for “snatching his pen” and said that “no dictatorship can stop him.” According to reports, a poem was published under the pen name of Chitraguptan in Saturday’s edition which accused the Centre of breaking the party into three factions and getting the party’s two-leaves symbol frozen. In the poem ‘Kavi Adi, Kazhagathi Azhi’, (paint saffron, destroy AIADMK), there is criticism about BJP’s leadership style. It also accuses the central government of using governors as political agents and law enforcement agencies as weapons. The Times of India report also said that the direction was issued by Jayalalithaa’s erstwhile manager Poongundran. AIADMK-Amma deputy general secretary TTV Dhinakaran told reporters in Madurai that people who were against the policy of the paper were warned and reprimanded.