Tamil Nadu: Jayalalithaa's hand in Kudankulam protest?

Chennai, Mar 24: Spearheading the anti-Kudankulam protest, People’s Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE) president SP Udayakumar said that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa encouraged the anti-nuclear protest and without her support, the protest could not have sustained in the state.

In an interview to Mail Today, Udayakumar said, "It is she who encouraged us. Without her support we could not have continued the struggle," adding that he demanded for the release of 18 anti-nuclear protestors.

She came out in support of the agitation before the October civic elections and told us, 'I am with you. Your sister will not let you down'. She used us to reap a rich electoral harvest (and then turned against her). We feel cheated," Udayakumar said.

Criticising the AIADMK government, Udayakumar pointed out soon after the Lok Sabha bypolls, the government launched a crackdown against the agitators, "The next day, our colleagues were arrested and over 5,000 police personnel were deployed at the protest site to intimidate the masses," he added.

Reacting to criticism, K Malaisamy, AIADMK leader said that CM had taken the decision after taking into the consideration the things which will benefit the common man. "Udayakumar is twisting facts to suit his convenience. The CM was waiting for the report of the expert committee constituted by the state government," Malaisamy added.

OneIndia News