'Captain' consoles Paramakudi victims

MADURAI: DMDK leader Vijayakanth on Sunday visited the government Rajaji hospital in Madurai and interacted with the victims of the Paramakudi police firing incident. Vijayakanth, accompanied by party functionaries, visited the hospital around 6.30 am and met the injured, who were being treated in the hospital since September 11.
However, in Paramakudi, the epicentre of the violent incident, DMDK functionaries were refused entry by angry villagers who accused the party of toeing the AIADMK line that defended the police action.Flag posts of the party were also felled in Paramakudi and the flags burnt. At the hospital, the DMDK chief told reporters that he had come to console the victims and their family members. Twelve of the injured are being treated at the government hospital.
The actor-politician had earlier announced that his party would give Rs 25,000 as solatium to the victims’ family members. But when DMDK treasurer R Sundarajan visited Paramakudi on Saturday, the bereaved family members refused to receive the money. They charged that DMDK presidium chairman Panruti S Ramachandran had ridiculed the sentiments of dalits in the state assembly by not standing up against the state government.
In fact, there was resentment against DMDK ever since Ramachandran made the statement in the assembly allegedly defending the state government’s stand. Subsequently, dalits in Karenthal village of Ramanathapuram district had felled flag posts of DMDK.
DMDK sources said that Vijayakanth learnt about the growing resentment against his party and was upset over the issue. Hence he had planned to visit to kin of the victims.