Chennai: Superstar Rajinikanth has slammed the Cauvery protesters for attacking policemen on duty when they agitated against the conducting of the IPL match in the city on Tuesday.
In a tweet posted early Wednesday, he said the brutal attack on policemen during the demo against the IPL was "the height of brutal violence" and the attackers should be severely punished. "If this violent culture is not immediately nipped, it will lead to national disaster", he said in the Tamil tweet.
"There must be even more stringent laws to severely punish anyone attacking policemen in uniform", said Rajinikanth.
The brutal attack on policeman Senthil Kumar by a member of the Naam Tamizhar Katchi at the rally led by NTK chief Seeman near Anna Salai Tuesday evening was repeatedly telecast by the TV channels and went viral, attracting wide condemnation from several quarters. Commentators expressed anger and angst at the attack in which the cop lost three teeth. A few other policemen on duty at the rally and the Chepauk stadium nearby had also come under attack by the protesters. One of them had his shoulder dislocated.
Police have lodged a case of attempt to murder against Seeman for the attack on Senthil Kumar. Cases under 10 sections of CrPc/IPC against the NTK chief and some of his followers have been filed. Addressing the media along with his allies, including Kollywood directors Bharatiraja and Ameer, Seeman came down heavily against Rajinikanth accusing him of indifferent silence when the police had attacked innocent people in some incidents in the past. "If he has nothing else to do and is feeling bored, why can't he go to the Himalayas?" Seeman quipped.
His partners on the dais were even harsher on the superstar, with Bharatiraja and Ameer saying he had no connect with the common man's issues. "Seeman is the undisputed leader of all the Tamils. If they want to arrest him, they must arrest all the 10,000 people who had participated in the rally along with him", declared P. Maniarasan, who leads another fringe Tamil outfit.
