Speaking to India Today TV, BJP leader K Annamalai slammed the DMK government after its party councillor was arrested on Thursday in connection with the death of an Indian Army soldier.
Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai. (PTI photo)
By India Today Web Desk: Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai has hit out the ruling DMK government after one of its councillors was arrested in connection with the death of an Indian Army soldier. Calling out the DMK’s “insensitivity”, Annamalai said that in Tamil Nadu, servicemen weren’t given due respect and were looked at as “aliens”.
Speaking to India Today, Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai said, “I hung my head in shame as a Tamilian, as an Indian, that a person who was serving our country was bludgeoned to death.”
WHAT HAPPENED?
The soldier, identified as Prabhu, and DMK member Chinnasamy got into a heated exchange over washing clothes near a water tank in the Pochampalli area on February 8. DMK leader Chinnasamy, along with nine other men, allegedly attacked 28-year-old Prabhu and his brother Prabhakaran that night.
Prabhu, who was severely wounded in the attack, succumbed to his injuries at a private hospital on February 14.
DMK DON’T RESPECT ARMY PERSONNEL: ANNAMALAI
The BJP leader slammed “the DMK mindset” which, he said, “spoke about Dravidistan, about a separate state.”
“So, by their nature, their respect for men in uniform, their respect for Army personnel, was never there. And this instance has clearly shown the government brazenly defending (the accused),” he added.
“The incident happened on February 8. Now, after yesterday’s hue and cry, especially by the national media, the local police were forced to arrest that councillor. (The arrest) was after a good six-seven days,” K Annamalai said.
Annamalai said that in Dravidian politics, servicemen weren’t given due respect and were looked at as “aliens”.
“In this case, the local police is also at fault because DMK, as a party, we know how they behave. For the local police, men in uniform are like their brothers. But they also did not take it seriously,” K Annamalai said.
“For Tamil Nadu, very unfortunately, over the long Dravidian politics, the jawans are seen as ‘aliens’. Someone who is defending the nation is not seen as one among us,” he added.
Annamalai slammed the “insensitivity” that DMK displayed, adding, “Soldiers don’t feel safe in Tamil Nadu. Anybody who is a public representative, whatever they do, the DMK as a party goes all the way to protect them. But this is very shameful.”
“This issue reflects the state as a whole, reflects what kind of culture Tamil Nadu as a state has,” K Annamalai told India Today.
