CM ridicules Opposition demand for new polls to Chennai Corpn

Chennai, Jan 19 (UNI) Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK President M Karunanidhi today ridiculed the Opposition'S demand that fresh election to Chennai Corporation be held with army's assistance.

Answering a question, Mr Karunanidhi wondered why the Opposition had left the Navy and the Air Force.

The DMK leader rejected a suggestion that his offer to hold a fresh election in 99 wards, identified by the Madras High Court in a split verdict, amounted to admitting guilt.

One of the judges in a Division Bench ordered repoll, holding that the wards witnessed large-scale violence during the October last elections.

He said the Indian chieftain, Veerapandiya Kattabomman had bravely accepted hanging after waging a bloody war with the British and recently the former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein had also accepted hanging after refusing to cover his face. 'Can we say they accepted their guilt?' he asked.

Mr Karunanidhi, answering another question, said the violence witnessed during the October last civic poll was nothing compared to the violence unleashed during the 2001 civic poll, when the AIADMK was in power.

He quoted media reports having stated that booth capturing, stuffing ballot boxes, group clashes and police firing marred the local bodies poll.

UNI