CHENNAI: A day after AMMK deputy general secretary TTV Dhinakaran announced that they would not challenge the disqualification of 18 MLAs but would face the by-election, the ruling AIADMK has speeded up its moves for the by-polls by calling for a meeting of 122 election in-charges appointed for the 20 Assembly constituencies on November 3.
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Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami and Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam will interact with the by-election in charges comprising the entire Cabinet and 90 senior functionaries on the campaign themes and strategies to be adopted.
Meanwhile, the AIADMK mouthpiece ‘Namadhu Amma’ on Thursday alleged that DMK president MK Stalin and AMMK deputy general secretary TTV Dhinakaran had a ‘secret’ meeting at a hotel in Madurai where both of them stayed ahead of their visit to Pasumpon village to pay homage to late leader Muthuramalinga Thevar.
The write up in that daily alleged that only after the meeting, Dhinakaran had announced the decision of 18 MLAs not to move the Supreme Court but to face the by-elections. However, Thanga Thamizh Selvan, one of the 18 disqualified MLAs, denied this allegation. He said though both leaders stayed in the same hotel, they did not meet each other and there was no need for that.
Thanga Thamizh Selvan also clarified that they had decided to face the by-elections since the legal
process of challenging the disqualification of MLAs in the Supreme Court would be a longer one.
Answering reporters' queries, Thanga Thamizh Selvan said that they would highlight the ‘misrule and maladministration’ of the present government as their election plank when the by-elections are notified.
Seventeen TN fishermen released by SL court
Ramanathapuram: As a goodwill gesture ahead of Deepavali, a Sri Lankan court on Thursday released 17 Tamil Nadu fishermen, who had been arrested on October 28. The fishermen had ventured into the sea from Rameswaram, Jegathapattinam and Mandapam of the Pudukottai district and were arrested by the Sri Lankan navy. After releasing them, the court ordered owners of the boats to appear before it on November 23 to avoid nationalisation of their boats.