By IANS,
Chennai : DMK president M. Karunanidhi Wednesday accused the AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu of practising vindictive politics, after he was not allowed to meet a jailed party leader.
In a statement issued here, the former Tamil Nadu chief minister said: “Governments would come and go. It will be decided every five years in the democratic competition. It is not good that those in power forget that they would have to face people in five years.”
Karunanidhi’s outburst came after he was not allowed to meet party leader and former minister Veerapandi S. Arumugam who was lodged in a jail here.
On Monday, police arrested two former DMK ministers – Arumugam and I. Periyasamy.
Karunanidhi said Arumugam was arrested here and taken to Salem by road as the case was registered against him there. But after reaching Salem the authorities found that there was no place in the jail there, and therefore he was brought back to Chennai.
“Arumugam is a heart patient. Why should he be shunted between Chennai and Salem? Why this vindictive politics? Is this not misuse of power?” asked Karunanidhi.
According to Karunanidhi, the authorities told him the day before that he could visit Arumugam Wednesday.
“But Arumugam was shifted out of Puzhal jail (near Chennai) Wednesday morning so that we could not meet him despite having sent our applications Tuesday,” Karunanidhi said. Now the former agriculture minister in the previous DMK government has been shifted to Vellore jail.
While Arumugam was arrested on charges of setting fire to huts in Angammal Colony in Salem district, around 280 km from here, Periyasamy was arrested for alleged unlawful mining of granite in Dindigul district, around 400 km from here.