By IANS,
Chennai : The Madras High Court Friday asked the Tamil Nadu government to file a detailed report on the alleged lapse in the security cover of AIADMK chief J. Jayalalitha.
AIADMK advocates’ wing secretary Navaneethakrishnan, who filed the petition, cited Jayalalitha’s statement alleging a conspiracy to assassinate her Thursday in Pasumpon village, 500 km south of here, and claimed “it was the obvious result of carelessness and collusion on part of the police”.
Jayalalitha Thursday alleged a “murderous DMK plot to assassinate” her after the windscreen of her vehicle was damaged in stone pelting by a huge mob gathered at her rally. The police claimed her supporters had thrown stones in frustration after failing to get a better view of their leader.
“In view of the court being seized of another petition on the issue of need for enhanced protection to the former chief minister following threats to her life from foreign pro-Tamil Tigers organisations, police inaction in Pasumpon amounted to contempt of court,” Navaneethakrishnan argued.
Judge M. Jayachandran ordered advocate general G. Masilamani to file a detailed status report from the police Nov 5.
Meanwhile, the state secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) N. Varadarajan said that the ruling DMK needed to be more careful on the security aspect of political leaders.
“Despite having political differences with different leaders, we feel that the government needs to pay more attention to security of leaders. One can say this on the basis of reports of attacks on former chief minister Jayalalitha,” Varadarajan told reporters.
K.V. Thangkabalu, president of the Congress’s state unit was also guarded in his comments in the matter in a separate interaction with the press.
“While I could reach Pasumpon village without any trouble, Jayalalitha’s convoy was indeed attacked. In my opinion, the state police apparatus ought to have prevented the incident,” Thangkabalu observed.
Meanwhile, several instances of AIADMK workers attacking government property were reported from all over Tamil Nadu, police sources said.