AIADMK coordinator O. Panneerselvam on Sunday criticised the DMK government over the death of a government bus conductor after he was attacked by a drunken man. He urged the Chief Minister to maintain law and order by cracking down on anti-social elements.
In a statement, he urged the Chief Minister to grant a solatium of ₹1 crore to the family of the conductor and a government job to one of the family members. The government had earlier announced a solatium of ₹10 lakh.
“If law and order is to be maintained, political interference should be checked and the police should be given a free hand. Besides, steps should be taken to reduce the number of liquor shops in phases,” Mr. Panneerselvam said.
Under the DMK government, murders were reported even at daytime. Women, traders, entrepreneurs, police personnel and members of the public had been severely affected, he said. The latest in the list was the murder of the conductor. “Because of such recurring incidents, there is no safety for anyone,” he said.
If such an incident could happen on a bus, in the presence of passengers, one could only imagine the plight of people in secluded places, he said. “Though liquor is among the reasons for the death of the conductor, the fear of the police is not there any more. The attacks on police personnel and the eventual political interference are the primary reason,” Mr. Panneerselvam said.
Citing media reports, quoting the police, that ganja was being smuggled into Tamil Nadu and Chennai had become a market for psychotropic substances with the involvement of police personnel, he said law and order was deteriorating.
While law and order had become a “joke”, the Chief Minister was declaring in the Assembly that his government was going ahead with six goals of development. “But the Chief Minister has forgotten the fact that law and order is the basis for these goals to be achieved,” he said.
