Tamil Nadu: Video Of Man Assaulting And Verbally Abusing Hindi Speaking Migrant Workers In Train Emerges; Railway Police Registers FIR

In a video that has gone viral on social media, a Tamil man was seen assaulting and verbally abusing Hindi-speaking migrant workers in a train.

The man (wearing an orange-coloured shirt) first asks another traveller, whether the group is Tamil or Hindi. When that traveller replies saying, 'All Hindi', the man who asked the question starts hitting one of the migrant workers standing beside him. He can be heard using a number of expletives and also abusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Tamil Youtuber, Karthik Gopinath, in a Twitter post said that the assault is a hate crime that happened as a result of the hate politics going on in the state.

The Railway police have registered an FIR in the matter.

This comes a few days after the death of Kshetra Mohan Burman, a labourer from West Bengal in Chengalpattu. A group of local youth had beaten him up severely as they mistook him to be a thief.

Of late the state has seen the state has been seeing an increase in the derogatory remarks being made against 'North Indian' ( called 'Vadakkans' in Tamil) workers.

Many influential ideologues and political leaders, who declare themselves as ‘Dravidianist stock’, frequently indulge in calling north Indians as ‘pani puri sellers', 'pan parag vaaiyans' and worse. A significant section of Tamil media publishes and amplifies stories on the 'uncouth behaviour' of 'North Indian migrants'.

Following the row over 'Tamil Nadu' and 'Tamizhagam', Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) organising secretary, RS Bharathi had said, ''North Indians sell panipuri in Tamil Nadu, Governor also like them."

One such speech by Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) leader Seeman can be seen in the following video-

While no official statistics is available on the number of so-called 'North Indians', the state attracts a considerable number of workers from rest of India who are engaged in infrastructure projects, hotel industry, real estate projects, small industrial units, private security services and a plethora of skilled jobs including plumbing, carpentry, electricians etc.

Many entrepreneurs prefer migrant workers due to a combination of factors including lower wages and non-availability of locals for such jobs. Some even cite 'reliable work ethics' as the reason for preferring migrants.

Also Read: Tamil Nadu: Labourer From Bengal Dies After Being Brutally Beaten Up By Local Youth Who Mistook Him To Be A Thief

Pani Puri Jibe: It Is Hate-filled Ignorance That Drives Rhetoric Of Self-Styled 'Dravidian Stock' Against 'North Indian' Migrant Labour