A self-proclaimed fortune teller from the Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu found himself in troubled waters when his parrot predicted the win of a state party leader.
PMK candidate, Bachan called this action of the DMK-governed state as the “height of fascism.”As per reports, Bachan approached Selvaraj to predict his future in the upcoming polls from Cuddalore Lok Sabha seat on Sunday.
The fortune teller declared that Bachan was set to win, based on the card selected by the parrot.
The entire episode triggered a political debate over the arrest of the fortune teller/ astrologer, with PMK calling the current state ruling party, DMK, fascist.
PMK president and Rajya Sabha MP Anbumani Ramadoss slammed the DMK government for being partial to a poor fortune teller.
A self-proclaimed fortune teller from the Cuddalore district of Tamil Nadu found himself in troubled waters when his parrot predicted the win of a state party leader.
Selvaraj and his parrot are famed for fortune-telling in the district, and his recent prediction of Thankar Bachan, a PMK candidate winning in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls, led to his arrest on Tuesday.
Selvaraj’s arrest was made on the grounds of keeping the parrot captive. The bird is a Schedule II species under the Wildlife (Protection Act), 1972 and keeping it in captivity is a crime, as per Forest Ranger J Ramesh.
PMK candidate, Bachan called this action of the DMK-governed state as the “height of fascism.”
As per reports, Bachan approached Selvaraj to predict his future in the upcoming polls from Cuddalore Lok Sabha seat on Sunday. The fortune teller declared that Bachan was set to win, based on the card selected by the parrot. The parrot selected a card with an image of Lord Azhagmuthu Iyyanar on it.
Later, Bachan sought the blessings of Lord Iyyanar, the presiding deity of the nearby temple.
The entire episode triggered a political debate over the arrest of the fortune teller/ astrologer, with PMK calling the current state ruling party, DMK, fascist. PMK president and Rajya Sabha MP Anbumani Ramadoss slammed the DMK government for being partial to a poor fortune teller.
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"The government has said that it is a crime to keep a parrot in a cage and that is why the soothsayer Selvaraj has been arrested. All over Tamil Nadu, lakhs of parrot astrologers keep parrots in cages for fortune-telling. The now-arrested astrologer has been doing soothsaying at the same place for many years. He was not arrested then. Will M.K.Stalin become the Chief Minister?" Anbumani wrote on X.
The forest officials said Selvaraj would be let off with a warning this time, and he also had to pay a penalty of Rs 10,000 for keeping the bird captive.
(With inputs from agencies)
