Chennai: The funeral of Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, on Tuesday evening, passed off peacefully without any major incident of violence being reported. Thanks to the elaborate security arrangements made by the city police in tandem with the state police, which saw nearly 10,000 cops on the streets deployed in the city.
Complementing the strength was a lot of 2,000 policemen, which includes members from Swift Action Group (SAG) and Rapid Action Force (RAF), who were deployed between Rajaji Hall and MGR memorial until Jayalalithaa was laid to rest with full state honours.
The city police also deployed live webcast cameras mounted on vehicles in strategic locations in the crowded stretches between Rajaji Hall and MGR memorial.
The funeral saw attendance of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former Prime Minister H. D. Deve Gowda, Congress Vice-President Rahul Gandhi, Chief Ministers of eight States, Union Ministers Venkaiah Naidu, Pon Radhakrishnan, Nirmala Sitharaman, Kerala Governor P. Sathasivam, and former Tamil Nadu Governor K. Rosaiah, among others prominent personalities.
Most of the top politicos who turned up paid their respects at Rajaji Hall, and also attended the state funeral arranged near MGR Memorial. The security cover for the VVIP routes scheduled at short notice was pulled off at ease without any glitches.
A stray incident of stoning on an auto rickshaw plying along Wallajah Road with a fare was reported, and miscreants were nabbed by cops in civvies. The apprehensions over emotional outbreak triggered violence led to the total shutdown of Chennai while the deployment at sensitive locations remained a deterrent throughout the day. The cops attached to the city police who joined duty in the night shift on Sunday were retained until Tuesday night.
