New Delhi: The Cauvery water sharing dispute between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu shows no signs of abating despite the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal’s judgement.
On Sunday, AIADMK supremo and former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, J Jayalalithaa began her one-day token fast along with 3,000 party cadres, demanding notification of the final verdict.
The nine-to-five fast began amidst unruly scenes around the venue in front of Valluvar Kottam, a memorial for Tamil saint-poet Tiruvalluvar.
Several senior party leaders, including former ministers O Panneerselvam and E Madhusudanan, joined the ex-CM on the stage.
Party cadres, especially women, turned unmanageable and were seen surging forward towards the dais to have a glimpse of their leader.
No police personnel could be seen around the venue even as jostling crowds broke barricades and rushed towards the stage, to the complete failure of management.
Agencies report the police failed to anticipate the situation and were content with guarding roads and making traffic arrangements.
Journalists and cameramen too faced much trouble getting to the small Press enclosure since there were no entry or exit points.
Even those who managed to reach there were seen struggling and women journalists were seen calling for help as the enclosure was crowded with rowdy party workers.
Traffic was also badly hit in the Tamil Nadu capital with vehicles being stopped from kilometres ahead of the venue and morning walkers being forced to change their daily route.
However, despite the serious impact the event made to Chennai’s daily life, the fast venue wore a rather festive mood.
Those who spoke on the occasion made hard-hitting speeches against the ruling party and forecasting the fall of the DMK government, with occasional reference to the Cauvery issue too.
Comments
0 comment