Chennai: Seven individuals, including DMK Minister M Subramanian, were acquitted by a Special Court here on Friday in the long-pending case involving the assault of AIADMK councillors during a Chennai Corporation meeting in 2002. The court ruled that there was insufficient evidence to support the allegations against the accused.
The incident took place in a council meeting held under the chairmanship of the then Deputy Mayor, Karate Thiagarajan, where tensions flared between AIADMK and DMK members over the Chennai Kannapan Thital fish shop tender, which led to a heated argument between the two parties, which later escalated into violence. DMK members allegedly attacked AIADMK councillors using microphones and plastic chairs.
Several AIADMK members Jeevaratnam, Parimala, Mangaiyarkarasi, and Kumari sustained injuries to their head, hands, and feet during the altercation.
AIADMK councillors Sukumar Babu and Corporation Secretary Rita filed a complaint at the Periyamedu Police Station, following which two cases were registered against seven individuals, including Subramanian, former MLA V S Babu, Sivaji, Tamilventhan, Nedumaran, Ms Soundarya and Krishnagiri Murthy. At the time of the incident, all the accused were members of the Chennai Corporation.
The accused were charged with illegal detention, assault with weapons, threatening to kill, and damage to public property. Following an investigation, the Tamil Nadu police filed a charge sheet in 2019, and the trial began in the Additional Special Court here, which handles cases involving MPs and MLAs.
Over 70 witnesses were examined and cross-examined by the police in this case. After almost 22 years of the incident, Judge G Jayavel concluded that there was no sufficient evidence to convict the seven accused, leading to their acquittal.
