Coimbatore: Tension gripped the Thondamuthur assembly constituency after the DMK and AIADMK cadres entered into a scuffle and came close to exchanging blows.
The DMK candidate from the segment, Karthikeya Sivasenapathy, said the AIADMK men had threatened and attempted to assault him. In a complaint to district collector S Nagarajan, who is also the district election officer, he said the AIADMK and BJP cadres had surrounded his car raising slogans against him, banged the vehicle and damaged it with lathi that was snatched from police personnel, while he was returning after inspecting the polling station at the government primary school at Selvapuram in the morning.
He was rescued by the party members, even as a clash erupted between the members of the AIADMK and the DMK. Police intervened and pacified them later.
Sivasenapathy said his opponent S P Velumani had instigated the ruling party men to indulge in clash. He also charged the minister’s brother S P Anbarasan, close aide Vadavalli Chandrasekar and a few others with using filthy language against him, and accused police officers Silambarasan and Jayakumar of remaining mute spectators. He also sought action against them.
Velumani denied the allegations and said it was Sivasenapathy’s drama.
In a counter petition, Chandrasekar told the district election officer that Sivasenapathy had lodged a false complaint against him. “I was not at Selvapuram primary school when Sivasenapathy visited the booth and I was exercising my right to franchise at PN Pudur. He attempted to create violence and action should be taken against him,” he said.