2 killed in stampede outside Chennai’s Rajaji Hall where DMK leader Karunanidhi’s body is kept

Two persons were killed and 25 others were injured in a stampede outside Chennai Rajaji Hall where DMK leader M Karunanidhi’s body lies in state.

Police baton charged to clear the crowd, which swelled at the venue after a portion of the force was shifted to Marina Beach where the DMK leader will be buried later in the day.

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and political heir, urged people and party workers to keep calm as the injured were admitted to the Rajiv Gandhi Government Hospital in the city.

Thousands of Karunanidhi’s supporters have gathered in Chennai to mourn his death, as several leaders paid their respects to the Dravidian icon.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Congress president Rahul Gandhi were among several leaders who reached Chennai to pay their last respects to Kalaignar. Defence minister Nirmala Seetharaman, Tamil Nadu governor Banwarilal Purohit, state fisheries minister D Jayakumar, and BJP state leader Tamilisai Sounderrarajan accompanied Modi.

The Prime Minister met Karunanidhi’s wife Rajathi Ammal, daughter Kanimozhi, and son MK Stalin at Rajaji Hall, where the body of the former Tamil Nadu chief minister wrapped in the Tricolour has been kept.

A Tri-colour is placed on the mortal remains of DMK chief M Karunanidhi at Rajaji Hall in Chennai on Wednesday. (PTI)

The DMK started preparations to bury its Karunanidhi at Marina Beach, the resting place of many Dravidian political icons, after last-minute legal wranglings with the ruling AIADMK.

The AIADMK government had cited environmental rules to disallow Karunanidhi’s burial at Marina Beach, the resting place of the founder of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam CN Annadurai, MG Ramachandran, who broke off to form AIADMK, and his political successor J Jayalalithaa.

“All we need is 6X6 foot land for a tall leader, nothing else,” the DMK in the court while concluding its arguments for burying Karunanidhi.

The court also directed the Tamil Nadu government to ensure and establish a memorial for the 94-year-old leader, the party’s lawyer V Kannadasan said after the ruling.

Immediately after the court ruling, the government counsel sought a certified copy of the order triggering talk that the AIADMK government may appeal against the HC order in the Supreme Court.

Karunanidhi’s son and political heir MK Stalin broke down after the court delivered its order as hundreds of party workers celebrated the decision.

Karunanidhi, the leader of the DMK party for 50 years, died in a private hospital in Chennai owing to age-related ailments.

First Published: Aug 08, 2018 13:14 IST