Elderly man faints, dies at Jaya poll rally venue

TIRUNELVELI: A 70-year-old man died after collapsing while waiting at the venue of an election meeting before it was addressed by All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) supremo and Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Thursday, police said.
Rajamani came to the meeting from Puliyankdiand village and was seated in the venue when he suddenly swooned around 3.30pm, about an hour before Jayalalithaa arrived there.
He was rushed to a government hospital but was declared brought dead, police said, adding that the cause of the death would be known only after post-mortem.
Jayalalithaa addressed the meeting around 4.30pm.
Rajamani is the latest to die at Jayalalithaa's election meeting venue. Earlier, five persons had collapsed and died due to suspected heat stroke at various places, including Salem and Dharmapuri, in April.
Opposition parties had then accused the AIADMK of making people to wait under hot sun for hours resulting in such incidents and petitioned the National Human Rights Commission and the Election Commission.