Protests against fielding of T.P.M. Mohideen Khan as the candidate for Palayamkottai constituency by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam took an acrimonious turn on Monday as some unidentified miscreants hanged his effigy from Chellapandian Traffic Island flyover at the heart of the city.
Tension gripped the busy Vannarpet around 6 a.m. as the passers-by happened to see the effigy, carrying a message, ‘Run away Mohideen Khan, who ignored Palayamkottai residents’, hanging from the flyover. Following information from the public, the police rushed to the spot and removed the effigy.
Even before the ripples triggered by the unpleasant incident died down, a group of people burnt the effigy of Mr. Mohideen Khan in front of District Court Complex around noon, and raised slogans against his candidature.
Palayamkottai police have registered two cases in this connection. The fielding of the sitting MLA again as the candidate for Palayamkottai constituency by the DMK a few days ago triggered instant protests. After his effigies were burnt at Jawahar Grounds in Palayamkottai and at Melapalayam, a group of DMK area secretaries addressed the media the next day urging the party high command to withdraw him from the electoral battle.
Much to the surprise of the DMK top brass, demonstrations were organised in front of party chief M. Karunanidhi’s house at Gopalapuram in Chennai to press for the same demand. A party cadre, carrying DMK flag, issued a suicide threat by climbing atop a mobile phone tower at Vannarpet. As the party high command is apparently in no mood to budge to the threatening posture adopted by a few cadres, the protests are still going on.
