CHENNAI: PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss condemned the state government for the deteriorating law and order situation across the state and demanded the government take steps to ensure women's safety.

In a statement, Anbumani said that a woman, who was waiting for a bus along with her husband and child in Tirupur, was gang raped by three persons by threatening them at knifepoint.

"The incident has happened even before the shock wave of an incident in which a 17-year-old girl was gang raped by seven college students in Coimbatore subsided," he added. Saying that such incidents show the poor law and order situation in Tamil Nadu, Anbumani said that women in the state face sexual assault every day.

"The government and police remain as mere spectators. Whenever such an incident occurs, the police and government boast that they have arrested the perpetrators. But, when will the government realize that the arrests are mere punishments for the crime and the real responsibility is to create a safe environment?" he asked.

He opined that if the police had intensified patrol and monitored guest workers, the Tirupur gang rape incident could have been prevented.

In a separate statement, party founder S Ramadoss criticized Periyar University's decision to conduct recruitment of Registrar even as the vice-chancellor has been facing several allegations.

Ramadoss opined that if the Registrar is appointed after retirement, the new Registrar could initiate an investigation into the allegations. "To avoid this, the vice-chancellor is trying to appoint his supporter to the post before retirement," he alleged.

Urging the government not to allow malpractices in the University, he demanded the cancellation of the interview for the Registrar post.