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FIR filed against Palaniswami for assaulting man at airport: Police
Tamil Nadu’s leader of opposition and AIADMK interim general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami has been booked along with three others on several charges for allegedly manhandling a passenger at Madurai airport on Saturday, police said on Sunday.
Tamil Nadu’s leader of opposition and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) interim general secretary Edappadi Palaniswami (EPS) has been booked along with three others on several charges for allegedly manhandling a passenger at Madurai airport on Saturday, police said on Sunday.
The FIR against EPS, a former chief minister, his personal security officer, Sivagangai MLA P R Senthilanathan and former minister M Manikandan was filed on the basis of a complaint by the passenger, Y Rajeshwaran, at Avaniyapuram police station in Madurai district. HT has seen a copy of the FIR.
All four of them have been booked under six sections of Indian Penal Code (IPC) – 341 (wrongful restraint), 343 (robbery), 294 b (obscene words), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 506(1) (criminal intimidation), and 109 (abets any offence).
There was no immediate reaction from EPS on the matter. Assistant commissioner of police of Avaniyapuram did not respond to HT’s calls.
The AIADMK, meanwhile, filed a counter complaint against the passenger and accused him of abusing party leaders.
In his complaint, Rajeshwaran said he had returned to Madurai from Singapore on Saturday and was travelling on a shuttle bus after deboarding the aircraft when he spotted EPS and decided to go live on social media.
During the live streaming, a purported video of which went viral on social media, Rajeshwaran said he is travelling with an “example of a betrayer” and accused EPS of backstabbing “Chinnamma” – referring to V K Sasikala who was expelled from the AIADMK soon after former chief minister J Jayalalithaa’s death.
Rajeshwaran also flayed EPS for providing 10.5% internal reservation to the Vanniyar community in the run up to the 2021 assembly elections – a move that had irked the Thevar community to which Sasikala belongs to.
Rajeshwaran said while he was speaking on the reservation, EPS’s personal security officer snatched his phone and assaulted him. Purported videos of the incident which surfaced later showed Rajeshwaran being roughed up by EPS’s aides.
HT could not verify the authenticity of any of the above videos.
Rajeshwaran said he was in the party earlier but quit after EPS took over. He said EPS mumbled, looking at him and his personal security officer called him a traitor.
Near the airport exit, the complainant alleged, AIADMK leaders assaulted him and hit him on his head, chest, back and hands, leading to injuries. The leaders also took away his phone and threatened to kill him, he said, adding he was rescued by airport security officials later.
The AIADMK filed a counter complaint against the passenger.
In his FIR, seen by HT, former minister and Thirumangalam MLA from Madurai, R B Udhayakumar alleged that he was waiting in the passenger reception area to welcome the leaders when he spotted Rajeshwaran approaching them. He alleged Rajeshwaran used abusive language and even tried to attack him.
Rajeshwaran has been booked under sections 341 and 294 (b) of IPC.
AIADMK leader Sellur Raju alleged police have filed a false case against his party members.
“The police have filed a false case. This is fully done with vengeance by chief minister M K Stalin against the AIADMK… this regime has so much courage to do injustice to us by registering this FIR,” he said.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, a DMK leader said the police have also filed a case based on AIADMK’s complaint. “So how can there be any agenda?” the leader said.
