Southern States - Tamil Nadu-Chennai   

Police chase away striking truck owners

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI APRil 1. An indefinite strike by trucks and van owners, protesting the "high-handed attitude" of the city police and denial of permission for trucks to enter the city during day time, commenced today, even as the police "chased away" the protesters when they attempted to stage a `road roko' to highlight their demands.

Vehicles carrying essential commodities were exempted from the strike.

Trucks and lorries were parked on the roadside of the National Highways bypass at Maduravoyal, on the city outskirts.

According to lorry owners, the police collected huge amounts as spot fine and foisted cases on them. Further, a lorry was being checked by various wings of the police at different places and cases were being registered.

The Chennai, Kancheepuram, Thiruvallur lorry, tanker, tipper, trailor, van owners associations welfare committee said the protesters were ``lathicharged'' by the police in the evening and a few persons were injured in the police action. Also, 50 persons who attempted to stage a `road roko' were arrested. The strike by the truck, lorry and tanker owners continued.

However, when contacted, the Superintendent of Police, Chengalpattu-East, K. Shankar, denied there was a lathicharge. When a group of demonstrators staged a `road roko', the police "chased them away." While running helter-skelter, one of them dashed against a stationary lorry and suffered a cut injury. He was taken to hospital. Later, a group, consisting of 23 persons, including the committee president, R. Sugumar, and the general secretary, R. Periasamy, courted arrest, attempting to picket. The police made it clear to the agitators that lorries would not be allowed to be parked indefinitely. Following this, the drivers removed the vehicles, the SP said.

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