TN Police remove BJP flagpole on Highways Department land near Annamalai’s house; he vows to erect 10,000 in 100 days

‘DMK rattled by Annamalai’s yatra’

“The removal of the flagpole placed near the residence of Tamil Nadu state president K Annamalai in Chennai’s outskirts and the arrest of BJP karyakartas is strongly condemned… Curbing democratic rights is an unconstitutional act,” Reddy said in a statement.

The senior leader also claimed that the growth of the BJP in the state and Annamalai’s “En Mann, En Makkal” padayatra has shaken the DMK. He said that the people of Tamil Nadu will give a befitting reply to this “undemocratic act” of the DMK government at an appropriate time.

“The BJP will not be cowed down by such threats and it will continue to fight for justice and also expose the misrule of the DMK government,” Reddy said.

Also read: Annamalai meets BJP high command after AIADMK breaks alliance

The incident

The BJP Panaiyur unit’s functionaries had recently erected a 50-foot-tall flagpole on the ECR, near the house of BJP Tamil Nadu Chief K Annamalai.

It was said that the flagpole was erected on vacant land belonging to the Highways Department.

Following this, the locals condemned the erection of the flagpole by BJP functionaries and requested them to remove it. After the functionaries turned down the request, the locals held a protest.

The police and officials from the Highways Department held talks with the people and assured them that the flagpole would be removed. The police then took an earth mover to remove the flag pole.

Opposing the move, the BJP functionaries protested against the police. They got into an altercation with the police and a few pelted stones at the earth mover.

The police had to resort to “mild force” to disperse the BJP cadres, which resulted in “minor injuries” to a few of them, including IT Wing state secretary Vivin Bhaskaran.

Meanwhile, BJP Vice-President Karu Nagarajan visited the spot and held talks with the police and officials present there. The Highways Department officials informed him that the flagpole was erected without proper permission and had thus been removed.

Following the clash, the police detained a large number of party workers and let them off later. About five people were arrested for causing damage to public property.

Also read: Ground report: BJP TN chief Annamalai is a crowd puller at his yatra

‘10,000 flagpoles in 100 days’

Meanwhile, Annamalai announced that his party would erect 10,000 flagpoles across the state and that the final one would be erected at Panaiyur from where it was “forcibly removed by the police”.

“The draconian and fascist DMK government should understand that it is no match to the resilience and perseverance of a BJP karyakartha. Our party flag is a symbol of integrity and sacrifice, and every BJP karyakartha will hold it high with a sense of pride. By taking one down in Panaiyur, you’ve let 10,000 more to emerge!” he said in a post on X.

The Draconian & Fascist DMK Government should understand that it is no match to the resilience & perseverance of a BJP Karyakartha.

Our Party Flag is a symbol of integrity & sacrifice, and every BJP karyakartha will hold it high with a sense of pride. By taking one down in… pic.twitter.com/b73oFGFhER

— K.Annamalai (மோடியின் குடும்பம்) (@annamalai_k) October 21, 2023

Starting from 1 November, the state unit will install 100 flagpoles every day for 100 days across Tamil Nadu.

“The 10,000th flag will be hoisted in Panaiyur by Thiru @vivinbhaskaran, who was hurt by the state police’s aggression while protesting against the removal of the BJP flagpole. DMK’s days are getting numbered by their cowardly actions,” the former IPS official said.

Related: BJP faces challenging times, says Annamalai; calls for ‘political change’