Protests in Chennai over NEET petitioner Anitha’s suicide, Centre blamed

Anitha suicide: Tamil outfit demands scrapping of NEET as politicians make a beeline to pay homage 

Highlights 1 Naam Tamilar Katchi today demanded scrapping of NEET. 2 Several politicians paid homage to the 17-year-old girl. 3 Anitha committed suicide at her residence on Friday. A day after the suicide of Ariyalur Dalit girl Anitha, who led a campaign against NEET, Tamil nationalist outfit the Naam Tamilar Katchi today staged a protest demanding scrapping of the entrance exam. The Naam Tamilar Katchi said that making NEET the sole criterion for medical admission was wrong and relaxations must be given to provide better representation of the state board students. Meanwhile, Anitha's father has said that she was deeply concerned about entrance exam. He said that despite adverse circumstances, Anitha managed to focus on her studies. "What wrong did she do and who will now answer for her death," asked Anitha's father. As the huge number of people visited Anitha's home to pay their last respects to the departed soul, her body was kept at a public place in Kuzhumur near Senthurai. A number of relatives, friends and politicians visited the spot to pay their last respects to the 17-year-old girl. A strike has been called by various political parties in Ariyalur district. Shops and other public outlets were closed in support of the strike. All major establishments remained shut. About 14 students from Trichy today declared an indefinite hunger strike against NEET. Anitha ended her life after she failed to secure a medical seat on the basis of NEET score. Students' Federation of India members protest at Chennai's Mount Road over death of Anitha.   AIADMK LEADER ERRS While messages of condolences are pouring in after Anitha's suicide not only from Tamil Nadu but also outside the state, an AIADMK joint secretary has a tweet what could be described as insensitive. AIADMK joint secretary (IT wing) Hari Prabhakaran, while lauding her efforts to take the anti-NEET campaign to the Supreme Court, asked who sponsored the deceased's expenses of her flights to New Delhi. The AIADMK leader later removed the tweet following uproar over social media and used Anitha's photograph as his profile picture on Twitter to make amends. He has been tweeting in solidarity with Anitha after the goof-up. Also Read: NEET suicide: Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan express grief over Anitha's death Tamil Nadu girl Anitha who spearheaded fight against NEET commits suicide ALSO WATCH |  Anitha suicide: Massive protests in Tamil Nadu against NEET


‘What wrong had she done, who will answer?’: Father of NEET petitioner Anitha who hanged herself 

Mourning the death of his daughter, the father of 17-year-old Dalit girl Anitha who committed suicide in Tamil Nadu on Friday said she had studied for the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET) under extreme circumstances. "Anitha managed to study in difficult circumstances. She was concerned about NEET. What wrong had she done, who will answer?", news agency ANI quoted him as saying. S Anitha was a petitioner in the Supreme Court against the implementation of NEET for admissions to medical courses in Tamil Nadu. She committed suicide by hanging herself at her home in Ariyalur district, near Trichy, nine days after the Supreme Court directed Tamil Nadu to follow NEET for admissions to medical courses and finish the counselling process by September 4. © express web desk S Anitha wanted to become a doctor and had scored 1,176 marks out of 1,200 in Class XII. (File photo) Anitha wanted to become a doctor and had scored 1,176 marks out of 1,200 in Class XII. She obtained 199.75 out of 200 for engineering and 196.75 for medicine, which would have ensured her a seat in either stream without NEET. However, her score in NEET was 86 per cent, according to her family. She had filed a petition in the court against the implementation of NEET, which was moved to be impleaded along with the state government in the Supreme Court plea. Anitha's family said she had rejected an offer to join the aeronautical engineering course at the Madras Institute of Technology in order to pursue her dream of becoming a doctor. NEET was made mandatory last year for admission in medical and dental colleges across India. But Tamil Nadu has been against its implementation, arguing that it favours CBSE students over those under state boards. The state government had twice readied an ordinance for exemption, which was cleared by the Law and HRD ministries. However, the Union Health Ministry referred it back to attorney general K K Venugopal, while contending that if the state’s demand for exemption was accepted, other states will raise similar demands. Subsequently, the A-G revised his opinion, leading to the Supreme Court verdict on August 23.


Protests in Chennai over NEET petitioner Anitha’s suicide, Centre blamed 

Hundreds of slogan-shouting protesters across Tamil Nadu staged rallies and blocked roads on Saturday, blaming the BJP-led government at the Centre for the death of a 17-year-old Dalit medical aspirant who was found hanging in her home. Anitha S is believed to have committed suicide, few months after the Supreme Court dismissed her petition against the National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET), which she said was detrimental to interests of students from rural areas. Her death has brought the issue of medical education in Tamil Nadu and the politics around it into sharp focus, with political parties and even film stars wading into the controversy that has been compared to the suicide by another Dalit student, Rohith Vemula, in Hyderabad last year. In many districts, protesters burnt effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and shouted “vekka kedu, vekka kedu” (shame, shame)”, holding the central government responsible for her death as also for wrecking the dreams of many more. In Chennai, protesters blocked an arterial road leading to Anna Salai, the main road in the city. In Ariyalur, the district from where the girl hails, the ruling DMK and opposition parties called for a shutdown to condemn the state and central government on NEET, an all-India entrance exam for admission to medical colleges. Friends and relatives of the girl held protest demonstrations outside the hospital where her post mortem was conducted seeking abolition of NEET. Family members of Anitha, who had refused to accept the body, finally relented and took back her body from the government hospital at Ariyalur. Anitha, the daughter of a daily wage worker, was depressed over the SC’s dismissal of the NEET plea. (HT Photo) Anitha lost her mother at a young age and was brought up by her father, T Shanmugam, a daily wager in Tiruchirapalli. None of her four brothers have a steady job. Chief minister M Edapaddi Palanisami on Friday announced ex gratia of ₹7 lakh to Anitha’s family and a government job to a family member. Shocked teachers said she was the only student who had scored 100% marks in Physics and Mathematics in the whole district. “It is a pity that even after getting such high marks and qualifying for medical as per state government rules, she was denied admission due to the Centre’s attitude,” one of her teachers. Anitha told the media in August that NEET was a hurdle to people from rural backgrounds and poorer sections of the society. “This was the argument Tamil Nadu, too, put forward to reject NEET. Former chief minister J Jayalalithaa had blocked its implementation during her lifetime. After her death, the AIADMK government has become weak and even has become anti-people and succumbed to pressure from the Centre,” said political analyst Prof Ramu Manivannan of the Madras University. Opposition parties said as much, blaming the state and central governments for the NEET mess and held the BJP government responsible for the death. Two of the state’s most popular actors, Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan also expressed grief over the incident. “We need to ensure that no student should take such drastic step in the future. This is not the end. We will fight and win. We have to make our argument louder in court,” Haasan told reporters on Friday. Describing the incident as “unfortunate”, Rajinikanth tweeted: “What has happened to Anitha is extremely unfortunate. My heart goes out to all the pain and agony she would have undergone before taking this drastic step. My condolences to her family.” The protests over her death are also being seen in the context of growing anger in the state over what many see as the Centre’s anti-Tamil moves. (With agency inputs)