NEW DELHI: As death amid protests against Vedanta Group's Sterlite Copper plant rose to 13, the centre has sought a report from the Tamil Nadu government on police firing. Protests demanding the closure of the copper plant over pollution concerns in Tuticorin have been ongoing for over three months, however, violence first erupted last week with agitators fighting pitched battles with police, prompting it to open fire.
The DMK and other opposition parties in the state called for a dawn-to-dusk shutdown on Friday, as a mark of protest against the police firing. A petition has also been filed in the Supreme Court seeking a court-monitored CBI probe into deaths of protesters during the anti-Sterlite rally at Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu. The plea, which is likely to come up for hearing during next week, was filed by lawyer GS Mani. The SC asked him to mention the matter again later next week. Even as the death toll went up, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami affirmed that police had followed procedures as per law before opening fire.
Sporadic violence was reported in Tuticorin. Palaniswami blamed opposition parties and anti-social elements for instigating the violence. He said, “Section 144 of the CrPC had been promulgated in Tuticorin to prevent violence. But some opposition parties and anti-social elements were instigating innocent people to pressure the government and give us a bad name.” Meanwhile, the Madras High Court refused to entertain the state government's appeal against its order asking the government to preserve the bodies of the protesters killed in police firing.
Palaniswami said he and senior cabinet colleagues had been closely watching the development in Tuticorin. “We were sitting in the secretariat on that day and watching the happenings in Tuticorin on TV channels. Police followed all steps as per law before resorting to firing. It was done in self-defence,” he said. “I will not violate prohibitory orders like Stalin or Kamal (Hassan) did.”
