CHENNAI/COIMBATORE/MADURAI: Police have arrested 14 people in connection with Molotov cocktail attacks against functionaries of the BJP and other Hindu outfits in various parts of the State, DGP C Sylendra Babu said in a press statement on Monday.
He added that 19 cases have been booked and arrests have been made in 11 cases. The accused have been remanded in judicial custody. The cases were registered on incidents in which Molotov cocktails were hurled on buildings or vehicles in Coimbatore, Erode, Madurai, Salem, Dindigul, Kanniyakumari, and Thoothukudi districts. Three of the 14 are from Coimbatore’s Pollachi and belong to Popular Front of India (PFI).
A day after PFI raised the possibility of right-wing leaders faking attacks to garner attention and police security, DMK mouthpiece Murasoli published an article on Monday recalling instances in which the BJP and other Hindu outfit leaders had allegedly faked attacks. It said police should take a cue from these incidents and bring the culprits to justice. However, warring AIADMK leaders Edappadi K Palanisami and O Panneerselvam on Monday were united in condemning the government for failing to prevent “bomb culture” in the State. Palaniswami said the government should control “bomb culture” by taking quick steps while Panneerselvam said blamed the “deterioration” of law and order on the government’s “lethargic” attitude.
Attempting to keep up the pressure on the DMK government, the BJP State president, speaking in Coimbatore, warned that the saffron party could not be blamed if State Assembly elections are conducted alongside the Lok Sabha polls in 2024. “When becoming the chief minister, MK Stalin said he would take care of everyone. His failure to treat everyone without bias must be blamed if the Assembly polls are held next year,” he said.
Addressing a protest meeting to condemn the arrest of a BJP functionary for his “derogatory” remarks against DMK MP A Raja, Annamalai said the BJP would take ‘sanatana principles’ to all villages in TN before threatening police in the district.
“The BJP should also not be held responsible for any consequences that may befall some police officials in Coimbatore. We should not be blamed if these people do not receive pension benefits. If the DMK government does not function impartially towards everyone, widespread arrests will happen in TN too, as it happened recently in Kerala,” he warned.
Meanwhile in Theni, BJP local panchayat development State secretary MN Prabhaharan and his wife Krishnaveni, Chinnamanur 12th ward councillor complained that windows of their car had been broken.