Published Nov 05, 2026 | 8:30 PM ⚊ Updated Nov 05, 2026 | 8:35 PM
Sreekumar serves as professor and head of the Department of Wildlife Science at Madras Veterinary College.
Synopsis: The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government’s appointment of wildlife expert Dr C Sreekumar to the Tamil Nadu State Board for Wildlife has come under fire over his past social media posts expressing Islamophobic views and denigrating Congress leaders and student protesters. In several posts, Sreekumar calls student protestors “scum”, wishes for violence against Left liberals who support “violent Islamists”, and makes disparaging remarks about Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi and Karnataka Minister Priyank Kharge.
The Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government’s appointment of wildlife expert Dr C Sreekumar to the Tamil Nadu State Board for Wildlife has come under fire after his past social media posts expressing Islamophobic views and denigrating Congress leaders and student protestors came to light.
Sreekumar, who serves as professor and head of the Department of Wildlife Science at Madras Veterinary College, was among the members appointed to the reconstituted State Board for Wildlife through a Government Order issued by the Environment, Climate Change and Forests Department on 28 October. Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay heads the board, with the Forests Minister serving as its vice-chairperson.
The Department of Wildlife Science at Madras Veterinary College works on wildlife health, disease management, rescue and rehabilitation, and research into diseases affecting wild animals.
The State Board for Wildlife is a statutory body constituted under Section 6(1) of the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972. It advises the state government on wildlife conservation, protected areas and measures to protect wildlife and forest ecosystems.
Sreekumar, in a post on X, said he was “honoured” and that it was a “privilege” to have been nominated.
I am honoured to be nominated as a member of the State Board for Wildlife, the apex body that governs the wildlife policies of the state. It will be my proud privilege to discharge duties in my role as a member. My humble gratitude to the forest department and the government. https://t.co/8m8As3e15X
— Sreekumar C (@sreesnake) October 31, 2026
Communist Party leader Kanagaraj criticised the appointment and demanded that the government review it and examine who recommended Sreekumar’s name for the statutory body.
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A cursory view of Sreekumar’s publicly accessible X account, @sreesnake, shows posts expressing Islamophobia, supporting the contentious Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls (SIR), and calling student protesters “scum”.
On 9 October, he posted a composite picture of Gaza City in 2023 and 2026, showing the devastation caused by Israel’s bombardment of the coastal enclave, with the caption:
“Terrorists (real and wannabe) of the world, please frame this photo and display it in your homes. Teach your children what it is. Whenever you have this murderous itch to kill innocent people, spend a few quiet minutes looking at it. The world will be a slightly better place then.”
On 19 October, he reposted a video on X showing a French woman whose shop was reportedly looted during the ongoing student protests. The original post claimed that the woman was a Left-wing activist who had supported immigration and was subsequently attacked by people she had defended.
Sreekumar wrote:
“What a great story. I wish the same fate to ALL the left liberals and others who blindly support violent Islamists.”
On 28 October, Sreekumar posted a link to a Facebook post about Indian airline captain Smit Machchhar, who was stabbed on an Israel-bound flight in October during a failed attempt to hijack the plane. Sreekumar wrote:
“Congrats. You were instrumental in thwarting a dastardly Islamist terrorist act. The world owes you its gratitude for being the difference between macabre dance rejoicing in death on the streets of some countries and joyous celebrations of life worldwide.”
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Sreekumar’s X timeline also contains several posts about the Gandhi family and leaders of the Congress party.
On 8 July, Sreekumar reposted a video of a speech by Karnataka Home Minister Priyank Kharge, in which he says that 90% of saffron comes from Muslim-majority countries and asks the audience whether Hindus would stop wearing tilak because of its origin. In his repost, Sreekumar attacked Kharge’s intelligence and used a dog whistle to suggest that members of the audience were Muslims:
“How is it that all these guys have the same pathetically low levels of intelligence and common sense? And I am sure those clapping in the audience are the descendants of the Razakkars, happy that they let some addled eggs survive their onslaught and bring up a dumb generation!”
The Razakars were a paramilitary wing of the Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), founded in 1938 in the erstwhile princely state of Hyderabad. It was dissolved after Hyderabad’s integration into the Indian Union in 1948.
The militia committed human rights abuses and atrocities under its then leader, Qasim Razvi, while suppressing demands for Hyderabad’s accession to the Indian Union as well as against participants in the Communist-led Telangana Rebellion. Kharge is a Dalit leader who hails from Kalyana Karnataka, which was part of the erstwhile Hyderabad State.
On 14 August, Sreekumar reposted a video of a skit on an early-2010s TV show satirising then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and then AICC president Sonia Gandhi. He wrote:
“ATROCIOUS! This MumMohan is actually opening his mouth!!”
On 2 September, while posting a news story about Gandhi’s allegation of “vote chori”, Sreekumar wrote:
“The damaged, broken record is back, vomiting the same, stale lie that probably only he believes. How foolish and stupid can one be to say that variation in pre and post SIR lists indicates fraud.”
On 31 October, Sreekumar posted a fictitious “judgement” in the National Herald case against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, writing:
“Two can play the game of mock court!! National Herald Case verdict delivered.”
In a post on 1 November, while sharing Rahul Gandhi’s comments about CEC Gyanesh Kumar, Sreekumar posted a picture depicting a sleepless Gandhi dreaming about Kumar.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
