Coimbatore: Taking on the Opposition Leader MK Stalin for “politicising” the death of software engineer Raghu in claiming that he died after being hit by a hoarding installed by AIADMK men, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Sunday said the victim was run over by a speeding lorry and that CCTV footage in this regard has been handed over to courts.
A defiant and combative Palaniswami also came up with “photographic evidence” to “expose the double standards” of the DMK which installed “gigantic banners, hoardings and posters” across Coimbatore for the World Classical Tamil Conference in 2010 which only helped “publicise the DMK family”. At the same time, the party was criticising the AIADMK for putting up posters for the MGR centenary event.
Addressing the MGR Centenary celebrations here on Sunday evening, the Chief Minister singled out Stalin for making “hue and cry” about the hoardings and cut-outs in Coimbatore for the “gala event” since he is “not able to digest the huge success” of the celebrations and the AIADMK Government’s popularity.
Palaniswami spoke in detail about the death of Raghu, a software engineer working in US, saying he died after being hit by a lorry and not due to a hoarding as being alleged by Stalin and other opposition leader.
“He (Stalin) is just not able to digest the roaring success of the MGR Centenary celebrations and to stall it he has gone to the court by politicising the death of a youth named Raghu. Since the case is sub-judice, we have submitted the CCTV footage that corroborates our version before the court. I can say for sure that Raghu did not die due to the hoarding”, Palaniswami said.
Contending that the banners and hoardings were erected by “overjoyous cadre of the AIADMK” to celebrate the centenary year of late M G Ramachandran, the Chief Minister said Stalin was politicising the issue since he is ‘jealous’ of the popularity of the AIADMK. The Chief Minister also pointed to pictures of few hoardings and cutouts put out by DMK men during the 2010 conference that was played on the giant screen on the dais.
“What about these cutouts? Why were these cutouts and hoardings installed in 2010? Why did the DMK not ask its cadre then not to install banners? Everyone knows that the 2010 World Classical Tamil Conference was held only to further interests of the DMK family. Why raise a hue and cry when AIADMK men install cutouts for a public programmee?” he asked.
Raghu’s death and erecting cutouts and banners for MGR Centenary celebrations have been a major point of political discourse for the past weeks.
The DMK alleges that the AIADMK men erected huge cutouts causing severe inconvenience to the people. However, the ruling AIADMK denies the allegation saying regulations are followed on location to ensure that people are not put to any hardship.
