For the second successive year, the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam councillors clashed during the budget session of the Coimbatore Corporation, at the Council hall on Thursday.
In the presence of Mayor P. Rajkumar, Commissioner K. Vijayakarthikeyan, officials and journalists, the councillors hurled abuses and traded blows. The Mayor had to seek the help of the police to restore normality in the Council hall and it was restored soon after the DMK councillors staged a walkout condemning the assault on councillor (Ward 49) Meena Loganathan.
According to eye witnesses, the issue started with Ms. Loganathan entering the Council hall with a ‘namam’ smeared on her forehead to convey the message that the present AIADMK dispensation had done very little for her Ward’s development.
Provoked by this, two AIADMK councillors - S. Manimeghalai and S. Balu - replied with placards carrying messages related to the 2G spectrum allocation scam and the DMK’s defeat in the Srirangam by-election.
To counter the AIADMK, when Ms. Loganathan began preparing a placard, she reportedly entered into a wordy duel with AIADMK councillor V. Annammal (Ward 22) by criticising party leader Jayalalithaa. The wordy duel turned into full blown assault and Ms. Annammal is alleged to have repeatedly slapped Ms. Loganathan, said councillors who witnessed the incident.
Ms. Loganathan reportedly retaliated by hurling name boards that were on the table. Later, the AIADMK councillor complained that Ms. Loganathan tried to strangle her.
Meanwhile, a few AIADMK councillors flung water bottles on Ms. Loganathan and also on DMK councillor Lakshmi Ilanselvi (Ward 56), who rushed to Ms. Loganathan’s help.
AIADMK councillor E. Senthil (Ward 21) said Ms. Loganathan tried to draw the AIADMK councillors into a fight by flinging water bottles. Ms. Annammal claimed that Ms. Loganathan assaulted her with not only name boards but also a sharp object.
She was at the Council hall with a plan and tried to execute it to perfection. She said she would lodge a complaint with the police.
At the end of the budget session, councillors from other parties led by V. Ramamoorthy of CPI(M) condemned the attack on Ms. Loganathan. Bharatiya Janata Party, DMDK and Congress councillors also expressed their opposition to the AIADMK councillors’ behaviour.
Councillors involved in the fracas - from both the AIADMK and DMK - got admitted to the Coimbatore Medical College Hospital for treatment.
