CHENNAI: Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin and former chief minister Edappadi K Palaniswami on Monday accused the TVK govt in Tamil Nadu of failing to maintain law and order, saying it had hit a new low under its rule. They cited the murders of a special sub-inspector of police in Theni district and 10 others, including a 19-year-old youth in Chennai’s Vyasarpadi, on Diwali day.In a post on X, Udhayanidhi said the sound of sickles was louder and heard more often than crackers, reflecting the deterioration in law and order under Vijay’s govt. He pointed out the irony of the chief minister visiting the central prison and a police station to review prison security and law and order, while prisoners were escaping and policemen were being murdered.He criticised deputy speaker M Ravisankar for allegedly assaulting a member of the public who approached him to flag civic issues and threatening him over a video recording. “The state has not seen such a poor standard,” he said. Questioning the chief minister C Joseph Vijay on how long he would continue to deceive people by repeatedly speaking about the DMK, Udhayanidhi said the govt should answer for the people’s tears and bloodshed.Palaniswami echoed the criticism, saying the sound of murders was on a par with that of bursting crackers in the state on Diwali day. He listed murders reported in Theni, Cuddalore, Tiruchy, Chennai, Sivaganga and Tiruvallur districts.He said law and order had deteriorated to such an extent that anti-social elements and criminals were moving freely on the streets without fear and murdering people for questioning them. The killing of special sub-inspector Senthilkumar, who was allegedly beaten to death by a group of hooligans, was particularly shocking, he said. “When there is no safety for police personnel, how can the common man remain safe?” he asked.Politics was neither a cinema set nor the chief minister’s chair a stage for delivering punch dialogues, Palaniswami said, demanding stern action against those involved in the murders.AMMK general secretary T T V Dhinakaran and DMK deputy leader Kanimozhi also strongly condemned the killings. Dhinakaran accused the Vijay govt of remaining a mute spectator to the murders and pointed out that even the police, whose duty was to ensure public safety, were now unsafe.Kanimozhi said the chief minister, filled with arrogance over his popularity in cinema, would not speak up even if more people lost their lives. She cautioned him against assuming that people would continue to tolerate the situation indefinitely.
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