Misplaced Pages

Kovan (singer)

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Folk musician

Kovan
Bornkovil esaney,ariyalur DT
NationalityIndian
EducationIndustrial Training Institute, Nagapattinam
Occupationfolk singer

S.Sivadas (Kovan) is an Indian folk singer, and member of cultural and arts group Makkal Kalai Ilakkiya Kazhagam (People's Art and Literary Association). He writes songs and music about concerns and issues of marginalized people when DMK was not ruling Tamil Nadu.

Arrests

Joining the widespread prohibition movement in Tamil Nadu, Kovan wrote, composed and performed songs criticising government-run alcohol shops and the government when AIADMK came to power. Those songs came to the attention of officials sympathetic to the AIADMK-led state government. In late October 2015, Kovan was arrested by TN Cyber Crime Police under "Sections 124-A (Sedition), 153 (Provoking riots), 505 (1) (b and c) (intent to cause fear and alarm to public against state and incitement). His crime – to have written, performed and released on the internet, songs criticising the state government of Tamil Nadu and its Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on the burning issue of Prohibition".

His arrest prompted condemnation from activist groups, political parties and student bodies, joined by human rights organizations including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International. Notably AIADMK and TN Bharatiya Janata Party did not join. The songs went viral through social media.

The state government considered these songs derogatory, seditious, and attempted to remove these songs from YouTube. It also tried to shut down vinavu.com, a website supportive of the artist. Amnesty International India repeated its call to repeal the sedition law. Sedition law was created and used by the colonial British government against the Indian independence movement. Kovan was released on bail on 16 November 2015. He was again arrested for a song against the Ram Rath Yatra and Narendra Modi.

References

  1. ^ "Hail Amma! Tamil folk singer Kovan arrested for criticising Jayalalithaa's 'liquor-on-tap' policy". Firstpost. 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  2. "India: Folk Singer Jailed for Sedition". Human Rights Watch. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  3. "Dalit Folk Singer Arrested For 'Sedition' Must Be Released". Amnesty International. 31 October 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  4. "Tamil Nadu singer arrest: Human rights groups demand Kovan's release, call for scrapping sedition law". The Indian Express. 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  5. "Kovan's songs go viral on social media". The Hindu. 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  6. "Indian folk singer held on sedition charges". The Guardian. 3 November 2015. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
  7. "வினவு தளம் மீது அடக்குமுறை". vinavu.com. 2015. Retrieved 1 November 2015.
  8. "Leftist singer Kovan arrested for song against PM Narendra Modi". The Economic Times. 13 April 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2018.
Categories:
Kovan (singer) Add topic