Youth dies after immolation bid in TN

A 21-year-old man who immolated himself during protests against Karnataka succumbed to injuries at Kilpauk Government Hospital in Chennai on Friday.

Vignesh, a member of the fringe group Naam Tamilar Katchi, had set himself on fire during a rally in Chennai on Thursday against alleged violence faced by Tamils in Karnataka.

He was admitted to the hospital on Thursday night with 93% burn wounds.

Vignesh, who hailed from Mannargudi in Tiruvarur district, in his suicide note had written about the imposition of Sanskrit in Tamil Nadu, as well as the ongoing Cauvery dispute. The protest was led by party leader N Seeman.

Meanwhile, senior Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK ) leader MK Stalin was taken into preventive custody after staging a rail roko at the Egmore Railway Station in Chennai.

Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi and other senior DMK leaders also courted arrest as the entire state witnessed a shutdown over the ongoing Cauvery water-sharing dispute and the violence against Tamils in Karnataka.MDMK leader Vaiko and his party cadre were also arrested earlier in Tiruchy after attempting to stage a rail roko.

The bandh was called by all political parties and their affiliated trade organisations, barring the ruling AIADMK and its allies. Over 12,000 policemen have been deployed across Chennai to maintain law and order. Karnataka and Tamil Nadu are locked in a bruising dispute over the quantum of Cauvery waters to be shared.

The fight has seen large-scale violence across Karnataka – especially in Bengaluru – where rampaging mobs have torched vehicles and damages property worth crores. The SC on Thursday slammed both the governments of Karnataka and Tamil Nadu for failing to prevent violence over its order, and stated that its verdict had to be complied with.

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