Bid to assault Ayyakannu, BJP man held

Ayyakannu, the farmers’ association president, arrived at Arakkonam from Kancheepuram en route to Tiruttani on Wednesday. 

While he was about to leave by car, BJP supporters, who came there, tried to open his car doors and attack him. One of the supporters of the association prevented the attempt of BJP men, while another helped the vehicle to leave the area. Suddenly, the BJP cadre started pelting stones at the van, which was following Ayyakannu’s car, in which two of the association’s members, Periasamy (75) and Kamaraj (74), sustained injuries.

On seeing this, Ayyakannu returned and took the injured to Arakkonam government hospital. Periasamy lodged a complaint following which police reached the spot and conducted investigations. They picked Krishnamurthy for questioning.

Talking to media persons, Ayyakannu wondered why the BJP cadre were continuously trying to attack him in so many places like Vellore, Vandavasi and Palani, although he had not spoken anything against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He said he had only demanded a ban on use of genetically modified seeds.