Glass bottles hurled at DMK’s ‘Dindigul’ Leoni during Tamil Nadu poll campaign in Trichy

TRICHY: A group of unidentified people threw glass bottles at DMK's star campaigner and debate anchor 'Dindigul' Leoni while he was campaigning in Trichy on Sunday night. Palakkarai police have registered a case and are looking for the suspects who allegedly blew whistles at the gathering.According to sources, the campaigner 'Dindigul' I Leoni was campaigning from his van at Keezha Pudur near Palakkarai, which falls under the Trichy East assembly constituency, on Sunday around 7.30pm. Suddenly, a glass bottle was hurled at him. The bottle, thrown from Leoni’s left side, narrowly missed him and broke on the van’s roof, as seen in a video circulating on social media.Leoni was visibly stunned at the attack and the gathering became tense. The DMK supporters began looking out for those who had hurled the bottle.Following the attack, Leoni lodged a complaint at Palakkarai police station later that night. He complained that a group of around five people allegedly approached the gathering on two-wheelers by blowing whistles and hurled bottles at him.Leoni also posted a video on his social media accounts on X and Instagram. In the video, Leoni termed the attack by ‘opposition parties’ as vile and as one stemming from fear of losing the election. He said neither he nor his party DMK are afraid of such moves. Leoni vowed that his campaign would be more intense hereafter.Palakkarai police registered a case under sections 191 (ii), 191 (iii), 118 (1), 351 (iii), and 62 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), pertaining to charges of rioting, armed rioting, causing hurt by dangerous weapons, criminal intimidation, and attempting to commit offences. An investigation is in progress.'Dindigul' I Leoni, aged 68, currently serves as the chairperson of the Tamil Nadu Textbook and Educational Services Corporation. He has been among the prominent campaigners for DMK for years.