Tension prevailed at the Quaid-e-Millath memorial in Triplicane on Friday when DMK cadres raised slogans against Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president K Selvaperunthagai and other Congress functionaries. The incident occurred as they visited the site to pay tribute to the freedom fighter on his 131st birth anniversary.
Background of the Incident
DMK functionaries had gathered in large numbers, awaiting party president M K Stalin, who was scheduled to pay homage. However, Selvaperunthagai and several Congress leaders arrived during the time slot allotted to the DMK leader. This led to a confrontation as DMK cadres asked the Congress leaders to leave, citing the police-allotted schedule. They began raising slogans, calling the Congress leaders “betrayers” and “backstabbers.”
Verbal Exchange and Intervention
A section of cadres from both parties engaged in a brief verbal exchange. However, senior leaders from both sides intervened and brought the situation under control, preventing any escalation.
Selvaperunthagai’s Response
Selvaperunthagai downplayed the incident, describing the DMK cadres’ anger as understandable. He implied that the friction arose because the Congress had aligned with the TVK without first paying a courtesy visit to the DMK headquarters. Such a visit would have been customary to thank alliance leader Stalin following the assembly election.
Subsequent Tributes
Soon after the confrontation, M K Stalin and Udhayanidhi Stalin paid tribute at the memorial. Earlier in the day, Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, along with IUML leaders, also paid homage to the freedom fighter.
