AIADMK leader and Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Sunday strongly defended Assembly Deputy Speaker Pollachi V. Jayaraman in the sexual abuse and blackmail case, saying the latter had given strength to the complainant, a college student, to approach the police, which led to the arrest of the accused.
For the first time, Mr. Palaniswami openly backed Mr. Jayaraman, whose son was sought to be linked to the case by some sections of the Opposition.
“Mr. Stalin is politicising the Pollachi incident in his election tours for gaining mileage... But it was Mr. Jayaraman who assured protection to the complainant under the law and guided her to file the complaint,” he said.
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Mr. Palaniswami was canvassing for the AIADMK candidate for the Pollachi Lok Sabha seat and sitting MP C. Mahendran.
“The brother of the complainant had spoken to media that there was no need to politicise the case. But with elections round the corner, some mean-minded persons are trying to gain political mileage from it,” he charged.
Describing Pollachi as a sacred land, he said the sexual abuse incident came as a shock to everyone. “The police investigation is going on in the right track... Those trying to give a political tint to the case should think about what they had done for the people and what they are planning to do. If not, their era is going to end after this election,” said Mr. Palaniswami.
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Special team
The Chief Minister said that an ADGP-headed special team with three SPs had been formed for giving special attention to cases of sexual abuse of women and children reported in police stations across the State.
Referring to a 2003 case booked against Mr. Stalin for allegedly “trespassing” into the Queen Mary’s College in Chennai [when students were protesting Jayalalithaa’s decision to raze the campus], Mr. Palaniswami said the DMK leader was not speaking about the wrongdoings of his party functionaries’ wrongdoings. He also alleged that a DMK advocate appeared for the accused involved in Kodanad murder-cum-heist case.
Touring various parts of Pollachi constituency, the AIADMK leader urged voters to vote for Mr. Mahendran to elect him for a second term and thus elect Narendra Modi as the Prime Minister of the nation again.
“The brother of the complainant had spoken to media that there was no need for politicising the case. But with elections round the corner, some mean-minded persons are trying to gain political mileage from it,” he charged.
‘On the right track’
“The police investigation is going on in the right track... Those trying to give a political tint to the case should think about what they had done for the people and what they are planning to do. If not, their era is going to end after this election,” he said.
An ADGP-headed special team with three SPs had been formed to give special attention to cases of sexual abuse of women and children reported in police stations across the State.
Referring to a 2003 case booked against Mr. Stalin for allegedly “trespassing” into the Queen Mary’s College in Chennai, he said the DMK leader was not speaking about his party functionaries’ wrongdoings.