'My love for Karnataka is true, won't apologise,' says Kamal Haasan
Actor-politician
Kamal Haasan
, who stoked a controversy by his "Kannada was born out of Tamil remark," on Friday yet again declined to apologise and said he believed in law and justice and his love for Karnataka was true.
He claimed that the alleged warning by pro-Kannada groups threatening to boycott his film if does not apologise for his remark, was not new and that he has been threatened in the past.
"This is a democratic country. I believe in law and justice. I believe love will always triumph. My love for Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and Kerala is true. Nobody will suspect it except those who have an agenda. I have been threatened before. If I am wrong, I will apologise. If I am not, then I won't," Haasan told reporters outside Anna Arivalayam, the
DMK
state headquarters, here.
The 70-year-old leader, who heads the
Makkal Needhi Maiam
party, called on Chief Minister
M K Stalin
and said the meeting was related to preparatory work for the
Rajya Sabha election
. The DMK has given him a RS seat.
The veteran actor stoked a controversy during the audio launch event for his film '
Thug Life
' in Chennai, by remarking that Kannada was born out of Tamil. The
Kannada Film Chamber of Commerce
has threatened to ban his upcoming film if he did not tender an apology. His remark also drew sharp protest in Karnataka. PTI
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Time of India
Anbumani calls on Ramadoss, attempts to break the ice in vain
VILLUPURAM: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss called on his father and party founder S Ramadoss at the Thailapuram farmhouse on Thursday in an apparent effort to end the cold war between the two and resolve the ongoing issues between them. The meeting lasted about 45 minutes. However, political observers believed that the meeting did not resolve the issues between the father and son, as neither met the press, hinting that they had not reached an amicable solution for reconciliation. 'The much-awaited meeting has not yielded any fruitful results so far. We have to wait for a couple of days to learn what transpired between the two. Chinna Ayya (Anbumani) and his daughter visited Ayya (Ramadoss). They were closeted for about 45 minutes. Chinna Ayya's elder sister (Gandhimathi) also reached the farmhouse and joined the meeting just five minutes before they concluded the discussions. We have no clue what they discussed, but as usual, the media started speculating,' said a party source. Gandhimathi is the mother of Mukundan, who was appointed as the party's youth wing president despite stiff opposition from Anbumani in December last year. Mikundan has denounced his position a few days ago following the spat between Ramadoss and Anbumani. In a surprise development, Thuglak magazine editor and auditor S Gurumurthy, a pro-BJP political commentator, called on Ramadoss at his farmhouse on Thursday ahead of Union home minister Amit Shah's visit. Gurumurthy's visit was regarded as an attempt to insist that Ramadoss continue in the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) and face the assembly polls next year in the state. The visit comes after Ramadoss, while lashing out at his son a few days ago, had openly said he was not in favour of joining NDA for the 2024 parliamentary polls but was forced to do so following pressure from Anbumani and Sowmiya Anbumani. Ramadoss had earlier demoted his son from the post of president to working president, sparking a war between them. The father and son rift widened further after they held separate meetings with the party's top functionaries over the past few days to gain control over the party. Anbumani, while speaking to the party functionaries in Chennai on Wednesday night, termed party secretary Anbalagan a traitor for attempting to destroy the party.
The Hindu
2 hours ago
- The Hindu
Diplomacy is about ‘incrementalism', says Congress leader Manish Tewari
In the face of questions raised by the Congress party on the 'political value' of the people that the multi-party delegations had met, and what they had 'actually accomplished' on the Centre's international diplomatic outreach after the recent India-Pakistan conflict, delegates said diplomacy was about 'incrementalism', and was not a '20-20 cricket match'. Ahead of External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar's meetings with two delegations, Congress general secretary (communication) Jairam Ramesh had said on Wednesday (June 4, 2025) in a post on X that there needed to be an 'honest assessment of what was actually accomplished' and not what was 'spin doctored'. Mr. Jaishankar on Thursday (June 5, 2025) met the delegation headed by senior Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) leader K. Kanimozhi that visited Russia, Latvia, Slovenia, Greece, and Spain, and the delegation headed by senior Janata Dal-United (JD-U) leader Sanjay K. Jha that visited Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Indonesia, and Malaysia. 'There are reliable reports that the welcome in some countries was very lukewarm — to put it mildly — and that the political value of the people the MPs met was below par. Videos of the MPs engaging in silly fun and frolic while on a serious national mission have also been surfacing,' Mr. Ramesh said. Senior Congress leader Manish Tewari, who was part the delegation led by Nationalist Congress Party-Sharadchandra Pawar (NCP-SP) MP Supriya Sule to Egypt, Qatar, Ethiopia, and South Africa, on the question of whether the tour succeeded in its aim, spoke of consolidation of gains. 'Diplomacy is about incrementalism and consolidating those gains,' Mr. Tewari said. The diplomatic outreach had ensured the Indian point of view was presented concurrently in 33 countries, he added. 'The hyphenation (India-Pak) is a temporary mirage. It is only natural that when two nuclear powers are in conflict the world gets concerned,' the Congress leader said. 'We live in a contested political space. But for now, exposing Pakistan's perfidy should be the national priority,' Mr. Tewari said on the question of criticism from his own party on the utility of such a tour. Other delegates also contested the Congress's claim. JD(U) leader Sanjay K. Jha said that his delegation had met the Japanese Foreign Minister, had breakfast with Ambassadors to Japan from various countries, and in Jakarta, met with ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Ambassadors. 'To criticise an all-party delegation, which spoke in one voice on such an important issue, is a new low for the Congress,' Mr. Jha said. Communist Party of India-Marxist (CPI-M) MP John Brittas, who was part of Mr. Jha's delegation, said it had clarified India's viewpoint. 'We didn't go to play a 20-20 cricket match, for there to be winners or losers. Each person is entitled to their own opinion. Our delegation has laid down the foundation, clarifying India's viewpoint, and also underlined the dangers of Pakistan-sponsored terrorism. It is for the government now to build over it,' Mr. Brittas said. The president of the All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), Asaduddin Owaisi, who was part of a delegation led by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Baijayant Panda to Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Algeria, said that it was 'subjective criticism' to claim that the delegation did not meet people of 'political value'. 'Out of the four countries we visited, one (Algeria) is currently a non-permanent member of the UNSC (United Nations Security Council), and another (Bahrain) will get a seat next year. They exert influence on Pakistan and will be crucial in India's efforts to put Pakistan on the FATF (Financial Action Task Force) grey list,' Mr. Owaisi said, adding that the delegation met top decision-making bodies in all the four countries, and also members of think tanks.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
After Harvard, these 60+ universities are now under Trump radar. Check the list
Billions Frozen, Freedoms Challenged Live Events Targeting DEI and Campus Protests A Growing List of Institutions Under Fire (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel The Trump administration is ramping up pressure on American higher education, launching over 100 federal investigations since May 2024. Prestigious institutions like Harvard and Columbia are now at risk of losing student visa privileges, research funding, or even accreditation as part of a sweeping campaign against what officials call 'ideological indoctrination' and rising antisemitism on has already been hit with a six-month freeze on foreign student visas, while Columbia faces possible loss of accreditation. These actions signal a broader push by the administration to confront diversity programs, gender identity policies, and responses to pro-Palestinian protests—issues officials say promote biased or unconstitutional than 60 universities are currently under active investigation. These include elite schools such as Yale, MIT , and Berkeley, as well as large public institutions like the University of Michigan and the University of Washington. The Department of Education has opened at least 104 inquiries, with 70 focused on colleges and universities—many of them nationally fallout has already begun. Federal research grants—particularly in fields like climate science, sociology, and public policy—are being delayed or frozen. At Harvard, the visa freeze has caused significant disruption for international students and are pushing back, accusing the administration of threatening not just funding, but the core values of academic freedom and institutional autonomy.'It's no longer just about student conduct or curriculum—it's about control,' said one Ivy League administrator who requested to Education Week, at least 52 universities are under scrutiny specifically for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs. The administration claims such initiatives promote race-based programming and violate constitutional principles. Other investigations relate to antisemitism, gender identity policies, and responses to the Gaza Trump administration argues that the measures aim to protect Jewish students and dismantle 'leftist indoctrination machines.' But critics say the moves are ideologically driven, not universities that have tried to comply—such as Northwestern, which adopted anti-discrimination reforms—have been added to the list, raising concerns about the motives behind the list of targeted universities spans public flagships, Ivy League schools, STEM-focused institutions, and liberal arts colleges. Among them:MITUniversity of California, BerkeleyUniversity of MichiganUniversity of PennsylvaniaDuke UniversityCornell UniversityUniversity of Wisconsin–MadisonUniversity of WashingtonVanderbilt UniversityGeorgetown UniversityArizona State UniversityRutgers UniversityCarnegie Mellon UniversityRice UniversityUniversity of ChicagoNew York UniversityUniversity of Oregon Washington University in St. LouisNorthwestern UniversityUniversity of Alabama at Birmingham Western Carolina University(And many more...)Some schools are being investigated for minor compliance failures like incomplete foreign gift disclosures, while others are under scrutiny for allowing or failing to respond to student NextWith billions in federal funding on the line and political pressure mounting, American higher education is bracing for a prolonged ideological clash. University leaders warn that these investigations could reshape campus governance and stifle academic freedom, especially for international students, minority scholars, and those involved in activist the list of investigated institutions continues to grow, so does the uncertainty surrounding the future of higher education under a second Trump term.
