Lankan civil war singes Chennai; lawyers, police clash

BATON CHARGE: Policemen clash with lawyers outside the Madras High Court in Chennai on Thursday.

Ads by Google

ibnlive.com is on mobile now. Read news, watch videos
be a Citizen Journalist. Log on to m.ibnlive.com NOW!

Related Stories

• Tamil Nadu Opposition evicted from Assembly

• Madras HC blames police for clash with lawyers

• Lawyers on warpath, shoot-at-sight in Tamil Nadu

Photogallery

Find us on Facebook | Join IBNLive community

Stay ahead with G-Talk Buddy | Click now!

  

Chennai: The Sri Lankan civil war is spilling over to Tamil Nadu. The Madras High Court on Thursday witnessed heavy clashes between lawyers and the police.

Lawyers were protesting the arrest of one of their colleague for attacking Janata Party President Subramanian Swamy. The lawyers also burnt down a police picket inside the court premises.

But was the anger and outrage just at the arrest of a colleague who had attacked Swamy did this violence have the tacit support of political parties?

The man at the heart of the lawyer-police confrontation said that are lawyers with strong affiliations to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) who attacked him for his well outlined anti-LTTE stand.

"Those lawyers who have been identified are known to be LTTE (supporters). One of them has been arrested last night. He is also well known to be LTTE (supporter). The MDMK which is highly pro-LTTE party has been supporting this behaviour," claimed Swamy.

However, a section of the legal community has disassociated themselves with Monday's attack on Swamy.

But there are others who believe his visit to the Madras High Court in a 15-year-old case was uncalled for, especially on a day when the legal community had called for a boycott on the Sri Lankan Tamil crisis.

"The advocates as a community have been voicing, have been raising issue. So it is unfair on Dr Subramaniyam Swamy's part to call them all LTTE infiltrators and so on," political analyst Krishna Ananth said.

The attacks come at a time when the LTTE is on the verge of defeat in Sri Lanka and the Tamil crisis in the island country has led to acrimonious politics in Tamil Nadu

Opposition All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) has already demanded Presidents rule in the state, citing a complete breakdown of government machinery.

Whatever the provocation maybe, Thursday’s clashes between the two pillars of democracy in a court of justice has been shameful.

The fire that was lit inside the Madras High Court is now likely to spread especially with pro and anti-LTTE sentiments riding high in Tamil Nadu.