Chennai, July 22 (IANS) Popular actor Rahman, who has earmarked a space for himself in Tamil and Malayalam cinema with his fine performances, has now expressed support for the protestors at Jantar Mantar, pointing out that students were not India’s enemies but India’s future!
Taking to his Instagram page to voice his thoughts on the police action on CJP protestors, Rahman wrote, “When the protest at Jantar Mantar first began, I truly believed the government would step forward, listen to the students, and address their concerns. But as the days passed, watching the situation unfold became deeply painful.”
Questioning the government if whether the police action on students was necessary, Rahman wrote, “Seeing students being subjected to police action is heartbreaking. Why… why… why? Dear Government, was this really necessary? As someone in the public eye, I know my words can easily be misunderstood or my intentions misrepresented. But I speak today simply as a concerned citizen.”
Appealing to the government to listen to the students before it was too late, the actor wrote, “Please, dear Government, let compassion prevail over confrontation. Listen before it’s too late. Our students are not our enemies-they are India’s future. ‘They are like my children They are our children’.”
Several people backed Rahman’s thoughts on the issue, including actress Revathy Asha, who responded to his post saying, “Questions need to be asked.”
Actress Revathy herself put out a lengthy post on CJP protest on Wednesday as well. She wrote, “#cjpprotest #cjpprotestdelhi #cjp What is the ASK? … safeguard the future of the children, the future of our country by reforming the Educational System of our country – students are protesting in spite of being beaten, grown boys are crying thinking of what will happen to their future, women are in tears looking at the heartless violence their kids are facing, fathers are worried about their kids future, girls are begging to stop the violence inflicted on them…”
She further said, “Leaders we voted, entrusting in them the future of our children and our country, are silent. Hear them out, have a dialogue, agree to disagree but sit down and talk… They deserve to be heard… with Sonam Wangchuk and every student in the protest!!!”
For the unaware, police lathicharged thousands of supporters of the CJP and students, who marched from Jantar Mantar towards Parliament on Monday, demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over recurring examination irregularities, including the NEET-UG paper leaks.
–IANS
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