What looked like a high-stakes arms bust during election checks turned out to be nothing more than ‘cinematic’ drama. Election flying squad officials were taken aback when they found over 10 firearms, including AK-47-style rifles, inside a mini-van at Ashok Nagar during routine checks on Monday. However, the suspense soon faded when officials realised the ‘arsenal’ consisted entirely of dummy guns used as film props. The driver explained the replicas were being returned to a Vadapalani prop store after a shoot. After verifying the paperwork, officials cleared the van, returning to their routine work
Gautham Selvarajan
Last-minute clickbait
With the poll activities picking up pace, so has the influx of stories about prominent leaders ‘switching parties’ at the last minute. The latest name doing the rounds is S Semmalai, former minister and senior leader of the AIADMK, with ‘talks’ of him moving to the DMK. Semmalai has dismissed the rumours as “completely fake”, stating he does not even know how it started. The ex-minister says he has been getting many calls asking if he is joining the DMK. “Likewise, now they are saying a senior DMK minister is joining us. These stories keep coming, and there will probably be many more like this,” he said
Sneha Sivashanmugam