Chennai: Former Tamil Nadu chief minister O. Panneerselvam started a day-long hunger strike on Wednesday along with his supporters, demanding a judicial probe into the death of late chief minister J. Jayalalithaa.
While Panneerselvam is participating in the fast from Chennai, other leaders and supporters of the former chief minister’s faction are protesting in all the district headquarters in Tamil Nadu.
Last week, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) MPs led by V. Maitreyan met President Pranab Mukherjee and demanded a probe into late chief minister Jayalalithaa’s death.
Also read: AIADMK MPs meet President, seek probe into Jayalalithaa’s death
Jayalalithaa, who was admitted to Apollo Hospitals in Chennai on 22 September last year for fever and dehydration, spent 75 days in the hospital and was declared dead on 5 December following a cardiac arrest.
Meanwhile, “to quash all the speculations”, the Tamil Nadu government released a report hours after receiving it from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) on Monday.
The state government, which made public the discharge summary, maintains that Jayalalithaa had received the best possible medical treatment.
Also read: Jayalalithaa death: Tamil Nadu govt says AIIMS report shows cardiac arrest to blame
Panneerselvam, who had rebelled against AIADMK general secretary V.K. Sasikala on 7 February and claimed that he was forced to quit from his chief minister’s post, had urged an inquiry into the death of Jayalalithaa.
The opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) had also approached the Madras high court seeking a comprehensive probe into the death of Jayalalithaa.
