Kudankulam protesters were violent: Police tells Madras HC

Madurai: Asserting that they were duty bound to protect the Kudankulam Nuclear Plant, a top police official today told the the Madras High Court bench here to dismiss pleas seeking compensation for those affected by police action against protesters and judicial probe into police firing. Refuting allegations against police, Tirunelveli SP Vijayendra S Bidari said petitioners, Vanchinathan and Marx, were closely associated with Peoples Movement Against Nuclear Energy, spearheading the stir against the plant. The protesters had indulged in widespread violence and dangerously moved towards the nuclear plant with deadly weapons, he alleged in his counter-affidavit. [caption id=“attachment_473023” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Protests at Kudankulam.[/caption] The SP charged that the protestors used even children as human shields to cover their illegal activities.An Open notice had been issued in this regard to PMANE leader P Udhayakumar. Police had remained highly restrained despite provocation. Narrating the details, he said a strong crowd pelted stones at the nuclear plant on 9 September. The next day they moved towards the plant with weapons. There existed a clear and present danger to the safety of the plant and they did not disperse despite warning, surrounded police, and abducted some policemen also, he alleged.They brutally attacked police, and police acted with restraint, he said. Everything including bursting of teargas shells were done on the orders passed by the Executive Magistrate. The agitators spread violence allover the coastal area, and kidnapped a woman sub-inspector, the official alleged. They had detained two buses besides damaging a TASMAC shop, he said. Police were duty bound to protect the plant. He denied that essential commodities were not allowed into Idinthakarai, focal point of the protests, and that police damaged properties of people. The so-called fact finding teams were not competent to submit any report, he said, alleging that they had given false reports with vested interest. A Division Bench of Justice P P S Janarthana Raja and Justice N Duraisamy, posted the case to 3 October. PTI