The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Trouble at MDMK public meet near Pallavaram

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, Feb 12, 2007
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Trouble at MDMK public meet near Pallavaram

Staff Reporter

Violence by DMK workers alleged

TAMBARAM : A couple of cars belonging to members of the Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam apart from several tubelights were damaged during a public meeting organised by the party at Pozhichalur near Pallavaram on Saturday evening.

MDMK cadres have alleged that violence was unleashed by members of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, including a section of elected representatives of Pammal Municipality.

The party functionaries have also lodged a complaint with the Pallavaram police station, alleging the involvement of DMK members in the incident. The complaint was later transferred to the Shankar Nagar police station.

Kubera P Jaishankar, party's Tambaram town secretary, whose vehicle was damaged, said the public meeting started at 5.30 p.m. with a music programme where the party's propaganda songs were rendered.

It was not before 7.30 p.m. that party functionaries began to speak on stage. Nanchil Sampath, party's propaganda secretary, started speaking by 9.45 p.m.

At 10.15 p.m, MDMK partymen informed the police about a group of men seen moving around near the meeting venue under suspicious circumstances.

The DMK members advanced towards the MDMK workers and started talking to them. However, all this resulting in disruption of the meeting for a brief while.

Even as the confusion was on with policemen trying to calm down members of both parties, power supply was disrupted and shops in the area closed their shutters.

At this juncture, the DMK men used wooden clubs to damage tubelights installed on either sides of the road leading to the venue.

They also threw stones and damaged the windshields of the Tata Sumo and a Santro car belonging to MDMK functionaries.

The power supply resumed in five minutes and MDMK members alleged that the entire episode was a calculated and planned attack by the ruling partymen.

The meeting resumed in five minutes and Mr. Sampath spoke till 10.45 p.m.

Any prior information?

Pointing out that close to 50 policemen were present at the meeting venue, the MDMK partymen wondered if senior officials had prior information about a probable attack.

This is not the first time that ruling partymen have indulged in violence during a public meeting in Pozhichalur, they said.

M.Gnanamani, husband of the Pozhichalur village panchayat president, got onto the stage at a meeting organised by the Communist Party of India (Marxist) on the airport expansion issue on July 23. He was the panchayat president at that time.

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