PUDUCHERRY: TVK president Vijay’s plan to hold a public rally in Puducherry on December 5 has hit a roadblock with police refusing to grant permission for the event on Tuesday. Deputy Inspector General of Police Sathiya Sundaram said only an open-air public meeting would be permitted. The announcement was made after a discussion with Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy.
Vijay had planned a 30-km rally from Kalapet to Kanniyakovil, and TVK functionaries had submitted a petition last week seeking permission for both the rally and a public meeting near the Sonampalayam water tank. Following reports of a likely denial, TVK representatives met the CM seeking approval for the event.
On Tuesday, TVK general secretary Bussy N Anand, general secretary (election campaign management) Aadhav Arjuna, and former MLA V Saminathan visited Senior Superintendent of Police R Kalaivanan’s office, but left as he was unavailable, before meeting the CM again at his residence. Later in the evening, the CM convened a meeting at the Assembly. IG Ajith Kumar Singla, DIG Sathiya Sundaram, SSP Kalaivanan, PWD Minister K Lakshminarayanan, MLA KSP Ramesh, and TVK representatives attended the discussion. Police officials conveyed that permission for a rally could not be granted due to law and order concerns.
“Only an open-air public meeting is allowed. They may choose the venue and date, as there is little time left to make arrangements for the proposed date,” DIG Sathiya Sundaram told reporters.