Irate mob ransack Tamil daily office, 3 killed

Madurai, May 9: Three employees of a popular Tamil daily were killed and four others swooned when an irate mob, including loyalists of Mr M K Azhagiri, the Madurai-based son of Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, ransacked and set afire the newspaper office in the city today, protesting a report published by the daily based on a survey on the line of succession in the ruling DMK.

The victims were identified as Gopinath (24) of Keezhakarai in Ramanathapuram district, Vinodh Kumar (25), a local, both service engineers, and Muthuramalingam (40), a security person. The four who fell unconscious, including Gopi, a cameraman of Sun TV, were admitted to a nearby corporate hospital.

The resident editor of the daily lodged a complaint with the police stating Azhagiri as the prime accused, under whose instigation violence was let loose and the daily office burnt.

Mr Azhagiri had distanced himself from those who indulged in the violent act and claimed that they were not his supporters.

Meanwhile, two persons were arrested in connection with the incident.

The arrested youth-'Tiger' Pandi and Batcha- were among the accused named in the FIR registered by the Othakadi police.

The duo were secured by the special teams formed to nab the culprits.

Though the complaint lodged by the newspaper had charged Azhagiri with instigating the attack, the police had not named M K Azhagiri, as an accused.

Later in the evening, Sun TV Managing Director Kalanidhi Maran visited the spot and termed the attack as an onslaught on the freedom of the press.

He paid floral tributes to the bodies of the victims at the hospital and announced a solatium of Rs 15 lakh each to the bereaved families.

The Tamil Nadu Union of Journalists (TUJ) and Chennai Press Club today condemned the incident and demanded immediate arrest of the culprits.

Following the incident, AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa today urged the Centre to dismiss the DMK-led government in Tamil Nadu as it failed to maintain law and order in the state. In a statement here, Ms Jaya said the brutal incident at Tamil daily office in Madurai, where three persons were killed, showed the government's failure in maintaining law and order in the state.

She alleged that the incident clearly exposed the internal power struggle in Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's family.

The Tamil Nadu unit of the National Union of Journalists (NUJ) also condemned the attack on the newspaper.

In a statement here, NUJ Tamil Nadu unit General Secretary C Balasubramanian urged the state government to take stern action against those responsible for the incident and sanction adequate compensation to the victims' family.

In separate statements, CPI(M) State Secretary N Varadarajan and Samata Party State General Secretary K R Veerasekaran condemned the incident and urged the State Government to take firm action against the culprits.

Meanwhile, upset over the violent incidents in Madurai, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and DMK President M Karunanidhi today strongly condemned the violent incidents and offered to cancel the Golden Jubilee celebration, scheduled to be held here on May 11 to mark the completion of his 50 years in the state Assembly.

Sources said the Chief Minister was very upset and expressed his displeasure over the violence fanned allegedly by some party functionaries and supporters of his son M K Azhagiri, based in Madurai.

The Chief Minister suggested to the alliance party leaders that the function be cancelled.

Later, in a statement, Mr Karunanidhi asserted that there was no room for any dynastic succession in the party.

Mr Karunanidhi said he had repeatedly been saying that the DMK was a democratic set up and no one would be elected to any post by way of dynasty.

''Hence, no one should attempt to express views on the basis of dynasty. Even if they did so, no one should take it seriously and trigger violence'', he added.

He declared that stern action would be taken against those involved, whoever they may be.

Expressing deep anguish over the killing of the staff members of the the daily ''Dinakaran'', Mr Karunanidhi also announced a solatium of Rs two lakh, each to the famly of the victims, who died in the ransacking and arson in the newspaper office.

Noting that various journails bodies had condemned the attack on the daily, he said as a strong believer in democracy and press freedom, he would never accept attack on the media.

UNI