Stalin stopped on way to Salem, held on 'law and order' grounds

DMK leader M K Stalin was on Thursday arrested near here on grounds of "law and order," when he attempted to proceed to Salem to oversee the desilting work of a lake, over which his party men and AIADMK (Amma) workers had clashed.

Police intercepted Stalin's convoy of vehicles and detained him at a check post in Kaniyur after he insisted on proceeding to Salem, police said. Talking to reporters from his car, the Leader of Opposition in the state Assembly claimed that the police denied him permission to visit Salem to participate in the human chain protest seeking exemption for the state from NEET. Though there was no ban on him visiting the lake, police barred him from going there as well, citing law and order problem, he said. Besides Stalin, several other DMK workers were arrested, they said.

"This is nothing but an effort to defame DMK, which with the support of other parties has taken up the students' cause over NEET and is organising the human chain," he alleged.

A large number of DMK workers gathered at the check post on the National Highway, and raised slogans against the state government and police over the arrest of their leader.

Vehicular traffic was disrupted for nearly one hour due to the detention of Stalin and workers, who were lodged in a nearby marriage hall. Stalin had earlier appealed to the cadres not to get agitated and court arrest, since they were needed to take part in the human chain protest for the benefit of Tamil Nadu students.

On Wednesday, over 800 DMK workers were arrested from various parts of this district for staging protest against the desilting of the Katcharayan lake in Chief Minister K Palaniswami's constituency, by farmers owing allegiance to ruling AIADMK (Amma).