Coimbatore blast: BJP bandh on Oct 31 as announced, says Vanathi Sreenivasan

Chennai, Oct 28 (IANS) BJP Mahila Morcha national president and Coimbatore South MLA, Vanathi Sreenivasan on Friday said that there is no change in the bandh announced by the party on October 31 in Coimbatore demanding an iron hand to put down terrorism.

Vanathi, who had won the Coimbatore South seat by inflicting a crushing defeat on matinee idol turned-politician Kamal Haasan, in a statement said that bandh was a democratic way of protest and that the party was protesting against the terror attack in Coimbatore on October 23.

Coming down heavily on Tamil Nadu excise and electricity minister Senthil Balaji who is the minister in charge of Coimbatore, Vanathi said that he was not in Coimbatore since October 22 for four days and did not reach the city even after the blast and death of a person. She said that the minister has rushed to the city only after the BJP announced the bandh.

The minister was raising allegations against BJP state president K. Annamalai claiming that everything was normal in Coimbatore, she added.

She said that Senthil Balaji had threatened the trade and industry circles in Coimbatore against participating in the bandh and said that the minister seems to have reached Coimbatore only to campaign and threaten people against the bandh. Vanathi Sreenivasan said that BJP is a political party that cannot be intimidated by such threats.

The BJP leader said that even as the minister Balaji was talking about normalcy a strong contingent of 3,000 policemen are deployed in Coimbatore and 40 check posts installed to monitor the situation. Vanathi Sreenivasan charged that situation in Coimbatore was too bad and that was why the BJP had announced a bandh on October 31.

Notably, that in the car explosion on October 23 early morning near the Sanagameshwara temple, Ukkadam a 25-year-old youth, Jameesha Mubin died. Six of his accomplices were arrested and UAPA foisted against them after 75 kg of bomb-making chemicals including potassium nitrate, sulphur, aluminum powder, and charcoal were seized from the residence of the deceased Jameesha Mubin and arrested.

The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has already registered an FIR and commenced an investigation into the case with the DIG of the agency, K.B. Vandana reaching the city and conducting preliminary inquiries. Tamil Nadu police have also questioned two persons at Ervadi in Ramanathapuram district who are suspected to have associated with the deceased Mubin and other youths for conducting a killing spree in Coimbatore.