Chennai: Tamilnadu Transport Minister R S Rajakannappan was stripped off his portfolio on Tuesday evening, two days after he allegedly harassed a Dalit officer in his constituency Ramanathapuram.
It is said Chief Minister M K Stalin took the decision in view of a few other allegations also on the Minister, including his ‘unwanted’ comments to the media.
Sources said there were complaints against Rajakannappan and Chief Minister had urged him to mend his ways. ‘But it was of no avail.’
Rajakannappan’s Transport portfolio has been allocated to S S Sivasankar, Raj Bhavan said in a press release, in what could be termed the first Cabinet reshuffle after Stalin came to power in May 2021.
Welfare of Backward Classes, the Most Backward Classes and Denotified Communities department held by Sivasankar has been allocated to Rajakannappan and he has been re-designated as Minister for Backward Classes Welfare.
An allegation was made against Rajakannappan by a Block Development Officer belonging to
Ramanathapuram District. He had alleged that Rajakannappan had on 27 March rebuked him using caste name.
Saging a demonstration in front of all the 11 panchayat union offices in Ramanathapuram district on Tuesday, the members affiliated to the Tamilnadu Rural Development Department among others alleged that Rajakannappan verbally abused Rajendran citing his caste name in the presence of officials and a few councillors from the DMK at the Minister’s residence in Sivaganga district two days ago.