CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) on Sunday accused the DMK government of failing to curb terror activities after the Delhi Police arrested suspected terrorists from Tirupur district who allegedly plotted attacks.
In a statement, Palaniswami said the arrests by Delhi Police indicated a deterioration in the State’s law and order situation, claiming it had moved beyond routine crime into organised terrorism. He alleged that central agencies, rather than Tamil Nadu’s Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS), had detected and neutralised the threat.
Recalling the 2022 Coimbatore car explosion, EPS said the State government had initially described it as a cylinder blast before it was later confirmed as a terror-linked incident, accusing the DMK of downplaying the episode.
The AIADMK leader further charged that the State ATS had failed to apprehend suspects ahead of the Delhi Police action, reflecting what he termed a passive approach by local law enforcement.
Warning of serious consequences if the present government continued, Palaniswami said such lapses could lead to incidents comparable to the 1998 Coimbatore serial bomb blasts, one of the deadliest terror attacks in Tamil Nadu, in which more than 60 people were killed.