Tuticorin, Tamil Nadu: As many as 9 people were killed on Tuesday and 20 others injured in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin, as a protest against Vedanta's Sterlite Copper unit, going on for 100 days since the company announced its plans to invest Rs 25 billion in doubling the capacity of its existing facility to 800,000 tonnes per annum, turned violent. The protesters claim that the plant is causing harm to its employees and increasing the capacity of the plant would aggravate the problems.
Following a gas leak in March 2013, the then chief minister late J Jayalalithaa had ordered its closure, following which the company moved the National Green Tribunal. With the tribunal overturning the government order, the state moved the Supreme Court against it, and the petition has been pending since.
Meanwhile, Opposition leaders have condemned the deaths during the protest and blamed the government for being unable to control the situation.
Here are the top developments in the Tamil Nadu protests:
1. In a government statement, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister E Palaniswamy confirmed that the death toll had touched nine. He announced Rs 1 million for those who lost family members, Rs 300,000 for people who were injured severely, and Rs 100,000 for those with minor injuries.
2. In an official statement, Sterlite Copper late on Tuesday expressed regret and sorrow over the deaths that took place during protests against it in Tamil Nadu's Tuticorin. The company said it had appealed to the government to ensure safety of the employees of the plant, as well as the surrounding communities.
"It's with great sorrow and regret that we witnessed today's incidents around the protest today at Tuticorin. The company has appealed to government and authorities to ensure the safety of our employees, facilities and surrounding communities. Sterlite Copper plant is non-operational as we await approval for the consent to operate," the statement read.
3. Congress president Rahul Gandhi called the deaths during the protest "a brutal example of state-sponsored terrorism".
"The gunning down by the police of nine people in the #SterliteProtest in Tamil Nadu is a brutal example of state-sponsored terrorism. These citizens were murdered for protesting against injustice. My thoughts and prayers are with the families of these martyrs and the injured," he tweeted on Tuesday.
4. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) working President M K Stalin on Tuesday cancelled his attendance to the swearing-in ceremony of Karnataka chief minister-elect H D Kumaraswamy as he said he would be meet the protestors on Wednesday.
"I am going to Thoothukudi (Tuticorin) tomorrow to meet those who are affected due to and are protesting against the Sterlite Plant," Stalin told reporters.
"I am not going to attend Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy's swearing-in ceremony tomorrow. I cancelled it due to the incident which took place in Thoothukudi," he added.
5. Opposition parties including Kamal Hasaan's Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) condemned the violence that took place and blamed the E Palaniswamy-led Tamil Nadu government for unrest and deaths in the state.
"The peaceful protest by the people of Tuticorin against Sterlite demanded justice was ignored by the Governments. Negligence of the Governments is the reason for all the unfortunate incidents. Citizens are not criminals. They are the ones who lose their lives, earlier due to Sterlite and now due to the Government's orders,'' a statement released by the MNM said.
6. A government official on Tuesday said that around 20,000 people took part in the protest which soon turned violent. According to the statement, protesters allegedly attacked the police personnel, burnt police vehicles and vandalised the collector's office and police resorted to firing only after they couldn't control the mob.
Section 144 of CrPc had been invoked in and around the Sterlite unit to provide security to it, according to the orders of the Madras High Court, the police said.