We ask for water and we get a vice-chancellor from Karnataka, says Kamal Haasan

Reflecting the anger in Tamil Nadu, which has been steadily growing over the Centre's tactics to avoid forming the Cauvery Management Board, keeping in mind the BJP's prospects in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections, actor Kamal Haasan on Friday lashed out at both the central and the Tamil Nadu state governments.

At a time when protests have been erupting in the entire state over the injustice being meted out to Tamil Nadu in the Cauvery Water dispute with Karnataka, the decision of the governor to appoint MK Surappa, a Kannadiga, as the vice-chancellor of the famed Anna University has not gone down well with the people of the state.  

Haasan summed up the mood of the people in the state by putting out a tweet, which read, "We asked for water from Karnataka and we get a vice-chancellor from Karnataka instead. The gulf between people and the government cannot be more obvious. Are they taunting us so we react adversely? I wonder what their game plan is."

An hour later, he clarified that his tweet was not aimed at the vice-chancellor but the central and state governments, through another tweet. The second tweet read, "Mr.Nagesh (is) One of my Gurus. Mrs. & Mr. Rajkumar anna Mrs. Sarojadevi and my friends Mr. Rajnikanth and Mr. Ambresh are my own.That was a humorous quip at the central and state governments, Not a swipe at the Chancellor . Nevertheless, TN  needs water."

Surappa, who has served as the director of IIT (Ropar) for around six years, has 30 years of teaching experience. Of these 30 years, he spent a considerable amount of time, 24 years to be precise, at the Indian Institute of Science (Bangalore).