Prabhakaran’s statue: Vaiko to stage protest

Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (MDMK) has planned to stage a black flag demonstration on Tuesday in front of the office of the Nagapattinam Collector’s office to condemn the removal of LTTE leader V. Prabakaran’s statue. Party general secretary Vaiko, in a release, alleged that the removal of the statue that had been installed by Poigainalllur Tamils may have been the handiwork of the State government, as it had removed banners with Prabakaran’s photo on an earlier occasion. Mr. Vaiko demanded that the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) revoke the ban on LTTE, as it was an organisation that fought for the freedom of Tamils in Sri Lanka. In a separate release, Naam Thamizhar said the removal of the statue from the Ayyanar temple in the village was unwarranted as it had not created any law and order problem. Party leader Senthamizhan Seeman demanded that the statue be reinstated in its original place in the temple. If the government failed to do so, the Naam Thamizhar party workers would reinstall the statue in the same place, Mr. Seeman said. (The Hindu)