EPS condemns TN govt for booking farmers under Goondas Act

CHENNAI: Leader of Opposition and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Friday strongly condemned the Tamil Nadu government for detaining seven farmers under the Goondas Act for protesting to save their land and livelihood and demanded the government to immediately withdraw the cases against the farmers and release them.

The farmers in Melma and eight other panchayats near SIPCOT in Cheyyar in Tiruvannamalai district have been protesting the government’s order to acquire 3,300 acres of land for expansion of the industrial park. They have resorted to continuous protest demanding the government to revoke the order.

The AIADMK party had protested in support of the farmers on October 4.

In a bid to weaken the ongoing farmers’ continuous protest against the government, the government has been targeting farmers, who were active in the protest, and booking cases against them.

Stooping to a new low, the government now booked seven of them under the Goondas Act. They have never been involved in any criminal activities nor have any case against them, Palaniswami said in a statement.

The villagers resemble a war zone as the police have intensified their security measures and put up barbed wire fencing in several locations in the villages.

They have also deployed anti-riot vehicles in the vicinity to quell the farmers’ protest, he said and recalled that the previous AIADMK regime had never resorted to such anti-people and farmers’ approach though there were many protests. The police department under the AIADMK regime gave permission to protest and extended security to them unlike what is happening in the present DMK regime.

He insisted the government revoke the regressive measures against the farmers and hold talks with them to listen to their pleas.