Book CM, officers for killing 13: DMK

Condemning the ruling AIADMK for ‘shamelessly’ justifying the killings, DMK working president MK Stalin, in a statement, said the people who led the protests were targeted and shot dead by the police in violation of the Police Standing Order and the Supreme Court guidelines on encounters.

Stating that the police firing, which was carried out with weapons and force disproportionate to the size of crowd, escalated into a targeted attack on leaders of the protests the DMK working president said that a conspiracy was hatched well in advance to gun down the protest leaders instead of controlling a peaceful rally.

Wondering if such an action could have taken place without the knowledge of the state intelligence chief, DGP of law and order and above all Chief Minister Palaniswami, Stalin said the state government was defending the cops involved in the brutal killing from behind the screen. 

The transfer and key posting given to the Thoothukudi SP has vindicated the suspicions of the people, he added.

Demanding that murder charges be booked against several ‘heartless’ cops for executing the police firing and the CM for sanctioning the same, the leader of Opposition threatened to move the court if FIRs were not booked and investigation started against the CM and police officers for the killing.

Stalin also suggested that Rs 100 crore penalty collected from Sterlite in accordance with Supreme Court order for polluting the atmosphere, which is now available with the incumbent Thoothukudi Collector should be used to pay Rs 1 crore to each of the families of 13 victims of police firing and duly compensate the families affected by pollution.

DMK working president MK Stalin took a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday for keeping mum on the killing of 13 persons during anti-Sterlite protests in Thoothukudi. Asked about Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan’s claims on the four-year rule of the BJP at the Centre, Stalin sarcastically said, “Tamil Nadu is very much in India. 

Modi is the Prime Minister of India, but I doubt if he is the PM of some other foreign county?” “An incident has happened in Tamil Nadu, which is in India. Thirteen persons have died and between 50 and 60 people have been grievously injured. 

Fairly speaking, the PM should have visited Thoothukudi or he should have deputed union ministers. If that were not possible, at least he should have released a condolence message. It is shameful that he did not care to even issue a statement condoling the people’s death,” Stalin told reporters at Madurai.

He also described as a farce the proposed visit of Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam to Thoothukudi. Stalin accused the Deputy CM of visiting the district to avoid being cornered by the Opposition in the Assembly which would be convened on Tuesday. On Internet services remaining suspended in the three districts despite court direction, Stalin reiterated that the government was dysfunctional and said, “If it is a performing government, we can make an appeal. There is no use in appealing to this government.”

Later in the day, talking to reporters at the city airport, Stalin suggested that a resolution be adopted immediately in the Cabinet meet and State Assembly for shutting down the pollution-causing Sterlite plant in Thoothukudi.