Adequate security provided to Jayalalithaa: MK

Chennai, Oct 18: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi today told the State Assembly that Leader of the Opposition and AIADMK General Secretary J Jayalalithaa was given adequate security and the government was willing to enhance the security if she wanted, but the AIADMK members should maintain parliamentary democracy in the House.

Speaking after the en masse eviction of the AIADMK members, who plunged the House into pandemonium for the second day today, protesting against Local Administration Minister M K Stalin moving a privilege motion against their leader, the Chief Minsiter said a 55-member police team was providing security to her round the clock in three shifts.

Ms Jayalalithaa, who was under 'Z plus' security cover, was being provided with adequate security by the State police and NSG commandos, he said, adding that the DMK government was willing to enhance the security to her fullest satisfaction, if she wanted.

Referring to her remarks that an attempt was made on her life when a man intruded her Poes Garden residence couple of days ago and she had escaped with God's grace, Mr Karunanidhi said the incident was being over exaggerated by the AIADMK leader for political reasons.

When he was in the Opposition, he was also provided with 'Z plus' security cover and people from all walks of life used to meet him at his residence, party headquarters Anna Arivalayam and the Secretariat every day. But he never feared threat to his life and complained that the then AIADMK Government had scaled down security, he said.

If Ms Jayalalithaa feared that the intruder had come to assassinate her, it only showed that she was suffering from some kind of illness, Mr Karunanidhi said, declining to elaborate.

The Chief Minister charged that the AIADMK members were raking up the issue and creating ruckus in the House as per their pre-plan.

When the date for the monsoon session was announced, the AIADMK had chalked out its plan to create problems in the House and the intrusion had come in handy for them.

UNI