QChennai: One Day to Go for RK Nagar Bypoll & More

Here is your roundup of the top stories from Chennai.

1. RK Nagar All Set for Bypoll

With the campaign of various political parties and independent candidates ending on Tuesday evening, the Election Commission is all set to hold the polling for the Dr. Radhakrishnan Nagar Assembly constituency on 21 December. The counting of votes is scheduled for 24 December.

Like in April (when the bypoll to the constituency was scheduled but rescinded), political parties have accused one another of attempting to bribe voters this time as well. While the ruling AIADMK is seeking to retain the seat held by its late leader and former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, the DMK is looking to capitalise on the political situation in the state.

(Source: The Hindu)

2. Chief Whip Justifies Action Against 18 AIADMK Legislators

Chief Government Whip S Rajendiran, whose complaint to the Assembly Speaker led to the disqualification of 18 AIADMK MLAs owing allegiance to sidelined leader TTV Dhinakaran, contended before the Madras High Court on Tuesday that the disqualified MLAs were continuing to indulge in anti-party activities till date by campaigning for Dhinakaran, who is contesting as an independent candidate in the RK Nagar bypoll.

Events that had taken place since then, including their present conduct in the campaign for the bypoll, would leave no speck of doubt that they had voluntarily given up membership of the party, he contended.

(Source: The Hindu)

3. HC Dismayed over Reality Chat Shows

The Madras High Court has expressed dismay over a reality chat show conducted by a television channel which is alleged to have triggered a storm in the lives of a childless couple, by making them face a criminal case on the false charge of purchasing a baby.

Justice MS Ramesh observed that the time had come for the Centre as well as the state government to ban television shows which make people discuss their personal lives in public, that too after tutoring the participants to become emotional and level baseless charges against others.

(Source: The Hindu)

4. Petition on Missing Fishermen

A habeas corpus petition was filed before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Tuesday, seeking the production of 551 fishermen who went missing during Cyclone Ockhi.

The petitioner, AM Anto Lenin of Kanyakumari, said that a large number of fishermen from 42 villages in the district, who went for deep sea fishing, had not returned after Cyclone Ockhi. He said that his cousin’s son, the sole breadwinner of the family, was one of the missing fishermen. In another instance, only three of a crew of 14 fishermen, which included his friend, were rescued by a helicopter team. The whereabouts of the remaining fishermen were still not known.

(Source: The Hindu)

5. HC Stays Case Against Film Financier Anbuchezhian

The Madras High Court on Tuesday stayed all further proceedings pursuant to registration of a First Information Report (FIR) against film financier GN Anbuchezhian last month following the suicide of actor-director-producer Sasikumar’s cousin Ashok Kumar reportedly due to pressure put on him to repay a loan with exorbitant interest.

Justice MS Ramesh granted the interim stay till 29 January and said that Sasikumar, on whose complaint the FIR had been registered, could file his counter affidavit by then. The judge also directed a government advocate to take notice on behalf of Chennai city police and obtain appropriate instructions by the next date of hearing.

(Source: The Hindu)

6. Forced to Pay for New IDs, Claim Relocated Families

Slum dwellers resettled at the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenements in Gudapakkam, near Thirumazhisai, alleged that they had been asked to pay for updating their identity proofs with details of the new location. They claimed that earlier they were told told that the transfer of documents will be done free of cost. Slum Board officials however, denied the charge.

The residents alleged that during the registration camp held by the district administration earlier this month, they had to pay Rs 50 to get new Aadhaar cards and voter IDs and Rs 25 for ration cards.

(Source: The Hindu)

7. 'Dengue Vaccine to Be Ready by 2020'

India is currently working on vaccines to prevent dengue and the Phase 1 clinical trials for one of them is slated to be held in 2020, Ashwini Kumar Choubey, Minister of State for Health, told the Rajya Sabha on Tuesday.

In response to questions raised by another member TK Rajendran, Choubey said DSV4, the vaccine developed by The International Centre for Genetic Biotechnology (ICGEB)-Sun Pharma collaborative venture, is a recombinant vaccine on the Virus-Like Particles (VLP) platform with a tetravalent four-in-one VLP design; expressed in yeast, it elicits antibodies to all four DENV serotypes in a shorter schedule of 0, 1 and 2 months. The vaccine is expected to move into Phase I clinical trials by 2020, Choubey said.

(Source: The Hindu)