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Police ill-treated Killai residents: CPI (M)

By Our Special Correspondent

CUDDALORE Sept. 22. The CPI (M) district secretary, S. Dhanasekaran, has alleged that the police have ill-treated the people of Killai, near Chidambaram, on the pretext of restoring order. They have not even spared women. A 60-year-old woman, Apoorvam, who was hit with a rifle butt, is undergoing treatment in the Chidambaram Government Hospital, he said.

Talking to presspersons, Mr. Dhanasekaran said that in connection with the Killai incident, in which prawn farms were allegedly damaged, the police arrested 92 persons, including 31 women, and kept them at the Vellore and Cuddalore Central Prisons. In some families both the parents had been arrested, leaving their minor children to fend for themselves.

The CPI(M) leader claimed that unable to withstand the ``harassment'' of the law enforcing authorities and prawn farm owners, many left the village. Unauthorised prawn farms were still in existence in contravention to the Supreme Court directive, spoiling the cultivable land and marine life, he said.

The party appealed to the authorities to take immediate action to remove the illegal farms and initiate steps to restore confidence among the people. As a prerequisite, the party called for the release of all those arrested.

Meanwhile, the chairman of the DEPORT (District Environmental Protection Organisation for Right Tackling), M. Nizamudeen, made a representation to the Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, urging her to order the release of the arrested.

He said the prawn farms had already done enough damage to the ecology.

A major part of the mangrove had been destroyed owing to pollution.

The organisation appealed to the Chief Minister to direct the authorities to strictly implement the Supreme Court directive of closing down the unauthorised farms.

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