Tamil actor and politician S Ve Shekher has said that the Nadigar Sangam must hold elections once in three years.
S Ve Shekher was reacting to rumours that the Nadigar Sangam would hold elections only after the construction work on the new premises is complete.
“This has been the case for a very long time. Their decision to postpone the election till the new premises is ready is not valid and must be condemned by everybody,” he said.
The current president Nasser took over in 2015. His term ends this year. Along with vice-president Ponvannan, secretary Vishal and treasurer Karthi, they will seek a new term when the elections are announced.
The BJP politician also termed the association’s decision to remove him from the organisation ‘illegal’.
“I have been a member of the organisation from the eighties. Their decision to remove me is not valid. I’m fighting it legally and I’m here today to fight for my rights as an actor and long-standing member of the film community,” he said.
He resigned from his post as trustee of the organisation in January this year. Following a controversy over his comments regarding a female journalist, S Ve Shekher was removed from the organisation and his life membership was cancelled. He filed a case with the Madras High Court challenging the Nadigar Sangam’s decision, and earlier this week, the Madras HC issued a stay order on the proceedings by Nadigar Sangam.
The actor made these comments at the general body meeting of the organisation that happened earlier today in Chennai. To ensure that all of its members could attend the meeting, the organisation requested a city-wide shut down of all shooting and film-related events that were scheduled for the day.
S Ve Shekher came under heavy criticism earlier this year for passing derogatory comments about women. He was booked by the police for publishing sexist posts on Facebook about women journalists.
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The post titled “Madurai university, governor and the virgin cheeks of a girl,” claimed that the journalist, Lakshmi Subramanian, who had called out Tamil Nadu Governor Banwarilal Purohit for patting her cheek without consent, had made the accusation to defame the BJP government at the Centre.
The post was deleted following severe backlash from all quarters.
He apologised after journalists and women protested outside his house. “When it was pointed out by a friend of mine that the content was an abusive one, it was removed immediately. I do not endorse the views expressed in it. I come from a family that respects women and women journalists,” he said.