Stalin visits restaurant attacked by DMK members, offers compensation
Chennai, Aug 2: DMK leader M.K. Stalin on Thursday visited a restaurant whose owner and employees were attacked by party members and offered to pay for the damages, an act that won the heart of the proprietor.
Stalin went to the R.R. Anbu Biryani restaurant here and comforted the owner and employees for the weekend incident. He was accompanied by former Union Telecom Minister and Propaganda Secretary A. Raja and other colleagues.
On Sunday night, a group of DMK members led by Yuvaraj went to R.R. Anbu Biryani and demanded free biryani. The hotel employees told them that business had ended for the day, said police.
Enraged at this, Yuvaraj assaulted the cashier and other employees. He was joined by another party member, Diwakar.
The video of the attack went viral on the social media, following which the DMK on Wednesday suspended Yuvaraj and Diwakar for bringing disrepute to the party.
Stalin also condemned the violence on the hotel staff.
On Thursday, after Stalin comforted owner R.R. Tamilselvan, the latter praised the DMK leader whose father and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi is warded in hospital battling major health related issues.
"I don't have any words to say. Even when his father, a great leader, is admitted in hospital, Stalin came to our restaurant and comforted us all," Tamilselvan said.
"Earlier he had called us to the DMK headquarters and enquired about the incident and the damages. He said he would want to visit the outlet." He pledged to make good the losses.
Tamilselvam said Stalin had asked the local party leaders as to how and why such persons were admitted to the DMK.
Tamilselvan said Yuvaraj always used to come to the restaurant and demand discount on food. He also expected not be billed for the food consumed.
Tamilselvan said he started his food business on a cartwheel and eventually grew into a 21-outlet chain.
Meanwhile, the police have arrested five persons while Yuvaraj and Diwakar are absconding.
According to the hotel staff, Yuvaraj had come to the hotel a week earlier and had parked his vehicle blocking the entrance, resulting in an argument with the hotel staff.
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Two women died, 6 taken ill after ‘consuming’ mango kernel gruel in Odisha
Bhubaneswar/Berhampur/Phulbani, Nov 1: At least two tribal women died and six others fell ill after allegedly consuming mango kernel gruel in Odisha's Kandhamal district, police said on Friday.
Consumption of mango kernel, prepared by boiling the seeds in water, was reported from Mandipanka village in the district's Daringbadi block, an officer said.
While one of the two women (Rasmita Pattamajhi aged 22) died on Thursday night at Mohana community health centre in Gajapati district where she was undergoing treatment after "consuming the gruel", another woman (Runu Majhi aged 29) breathed her last while being taken to MKCG Medical College Hospital in Berhampur, Gadapur sarpanch Kumari Mallick said.
Six others, who fell ill after allegedly consuming the gruel, were admitted to a hospital and their condition was critical, said Dr Subrat Das, a medical officer of the health facility.
"All the six have been admitted to the hospital in a serious condition. We suspected that they fell sick due to food poisoning. The exact cause of the illness will be ascertained after completion of the investigation," he added.
The six were identified as Pravati Patmajhi, Dranglu Patmajhi, Tuni Majhi, Susama Patmajhi, Jita Majhi and Jibanti Majhi, Daringbadi BDO Pritiranjan Ratha said.
Meanwhile, the Odisha government has rejected allegations that tribal people have been consuming mango kernel gruel due to a lack of access to rice under the Public Distribution System (PDS).
Rasmita's husband Anil Pattamajhi alleged that they were denied rice under PDS for the last three months because of which his wife consumed mango kernel.
However, Kandhamal district magistrate-cum-collector Amrit Ruturaj dismissed the allegations, saying the family received rice according to PDS norms. "We are awaiting the postmortem report to determine the facts," the collector added.
Deputy chief minister Pravati Parida, who is also in-charge of the women and child development department said, "It is not a case of malnutrition. Mango kernel is part of their (tribal) regular diet. Sometime, the mango kernels get contaminated and lead to such unfortunate incidents. We have been actively spreading awareness about the risks of food contamination."
Health and family welfare minister Mukesh Mahaling, who ordered a departmental inquiry into the death of two tribal women, said a team from the district headquarters hospital and another local team are at the spot to assess the situation and conduct a detailed probe into the incident.
Mahaling said that the government was waiting for the postmortem report for a confirmation on the cause of the deaths. "People in Kandhamal consume mango kernel. It is common in that region and there also have been reports of health complications linked to it in the past," he said.
The Kandhmal incident reminds a similar tragedy involving mango kernel deaths in Kashipur block of Rayagada district, where at least 20 people died in 2001, and two more succumbed to mango kernel consumption in 2016. Additionally, mango kernel has claimed lives in Laxmipur in Koraput district in 2012 and 2013, as well as in Jharigaon in Nabarangpur district in 2018.
