DHARMAPURI: Nearly two dozen AIADMK cadres and two of its legislators were detained by the police for disrupting a meeting attended by State Tourism Minister R Rajendran on Friday at a sugar mill in Harur. This followed an altercation between AIADMK and DMK cadres at the venue after Pappireddipatti MLA A Govindasamy questioned the minister on the status of a project.
Govindasamy and Harur MLA V Sampathkumar were detained by the police in a private marriage hall.
The ruckus happened as the minister was reviewing the functioning of the Subramaniya Siva Cooperative Sugarmill in Harur.
On Friday, the minister along with Dharmapuri District Collector R Sadheesh along with various officials participated in a review meeting of the Dharmapuri Cooperative Sugar mill in Palacode and the Subramaniya Siva Cooperative Sugarmill in Harur.
The key aim of the meeting was to meet with farmers and ensure steps to improve the performance of the mills. During the meeting at the mill in Harur, tension flared between AIADMK and DMK cadres after an argument broke out between Govindasamy and Minister Rajendran.
On Friday, even before the review meeting began, Govindhasamy confronted Minister Rajendran and alleged that officials had provided wrong information in the Assembly on a project at the mill, thus effectively cheating the people.
"During the Assembly session, we were told that over 45% of the work in setting up the cogeneration unit at the mill had been completed. But work has not begun," Govindhasamy told the minister.
Further, he challenged the minister stating that if the work on the unit had indeed taken place he would resign and challenged the minister if he was bold enough to accept the challenge".
Following this the meeting began, but Govindasamy again charged that Minister Rajendran had been lying.
The comment riled the DMK cadres who started yelling at the two AIADMK legislators. The AIADMK men shouted back and an altercation broke out. Following this police escorted the two AIADMK MLAs out of the meeting and later they were detained along with 22 cadres.
Speaking to TNIE, Govidhasamy, MLA, said, "A cogeneration unit has been a long-term demand of the farmers in Harur and Pappireddipatti who are stakeholders in the Subramaniya Siva Cooperative Sugarmill. In 2023-24, Rs 89 crore had been sanctioned. In the recent Assembly session, they informed that over 45% of the work had been completed but it was not so. I have visited the mill on multiple occasions along with Harur MLA V Sampathkumar, both of us failed to see any such work. We questioned the status of the construction but were kicked out of the meeting and detained. The government is lying; there has been no work here."