Case filed against MK Stalin, 8,000 others for holding rally against CAA
Chennai: The Chennai City Police on Tuesday registered cases against DMK President M.K. Stalin and 8,000 others for organising protest rally against the Citizenship Amendment Act in Chennai on December 23.
The City police registered the cases under sections 143 (punishment for unlawful assembly), 188 (Disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant) and 341 (Punishment for wrongful restraint) and under the City Police Act.
Interestingly, the senior minister, D. Jayakumar has put the number of protesters at the rally as “only 5,000”.
Speaking to reporters in Chennai on Tuesday, he said after all the hullabaloo, Stalin and his colleagues were “just about managed to collect only 5,000 participants in the rally”.
Prominent leaders Congress MP P. Chidambaram, VCK MP Thol. Thirumavalavan, DK leader K. Veeramani, CPM state unit secretary K. Balakrishnan, DMK youth wing leader Udhayanidhi Stalin and Tamil Nadu Muslim Munnetra Kazagham leader M.H. Jawahi-rullah, were among those who attended the rally.
The party cadre had gathered near Thalamuthu Natrajan Maligai, Egmore, and proceeded towards Rajarathinam stadium, where the leaders addressed the meeting. The rally was conducted despite the Greater Chennai City Police Commissioner A.K. Viswanathan refusing to grant permission.
The Madras High Court had ordered that if the rally were to be held without police permission, it should be recorded using drone cameras so that the political leaders concerned could be made liable for violence, if any.
Meanwhile, a special court, hearing cases relating to MPs and MLAs, has summoned Stalin, former TNCC president, Su Thirunavukkarasar, Thol Thirumavalavan, Samu-thuva Makkal Katchi leader Sarathkumar and Karathe Thiyagarajan, to appear before the court on December 26.
Triplicane police had registered a case against them for conducting a demonstration without prior permission from the police two years ago when they protested for the formation of a Cauvery Management Board. The party cadre had also blocked the road in front of a government building.
