Chennai: If the year 2015 saw the BJP suffer setback in not ensuring jallikattu, 2016 was no better. As the party steps into another year it drags with it the assurance of jallikattu albeit its hopes of providing an alternative government has receded for now.
Whether the saffron party succeeds in keeping its promise on the traditional bull taming sport of Tamil Nadu or not, the year saw the leaders and also the Central ministers desperately take to social media to impress Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the digital India campaign. It has been a year of tweet and retweet for the leaders who have emerged digitally smart. Both the state and central leaders and also the union ministers emerged very active on the social media - Twitter and Facebook, and connected with the people to communicate the government schemes and Mr. Modi's achievements as well.
The PM who is instrumental in revolutionising the nation and empowering the party, has 25.9 million followers on his Twitter account. External affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj with 6.91 million followers, has demonstrated how the Twitter could be flexed not only to make the officials act swiftly but also in promptly redressing the grievances of the public - both in India and abroad. She is quite active on the micro blogging site even when she was admitted to the AIMS for a transplant.
Union finance minister Arun Jaitley with 6.36 million followers, Union textiles minister Smriti Irani: 5.43 million, home minister Rajnath Singh: 4.31million, Union road transport, highways and shipping Nitin Gadkari: 1.18 million, party chief Amit Shah: 3.71 million and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy: 3.55 million lead all others. In Tamil Nadu, state president Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan has 36.2 k Twitter followers, Union minister of state for road transport, highways and shipping Pon Radhakrishnan: 34.7 k and state general secretary Vanathi Srinivasan has 27.9 k followers.
And despite the Supreme Court striking down the Centre's January 7, 2016 notification allowing jallikattu inspite of 2014 apex court ban on the sport as "inherently cruel," Radhakrishnan is hopeful of facilitating jallikattu next month. "Based on the talks held for the past one month I have gained confidence that permission would be obtained to hold jallikattu during the Pongal festival coming January," he said.
On December 22 Union minister of state for environment, forests and climate change Prakash Javadekar conducted a meeting with officials and explored the options for holding jallikattu.
