DMK leader K Kanimozhi on Friday objected to the Ram Rajya Rath Yatra on the grounds of it allegedly breaking the law under the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988. The Rajya Sabha MP from Tamil Nadu took to Twitter to slam both the state government and the procession which is passing through the southern state.
In a series of tweets, Kanimozhi raised questions on why the police did not confiscate the vehicle in spite of it allegedly violating the Motor Vehicles Act.
Citing a report from The Hindu, Kanimozhi, who is the daughter of DMK chief K Karunanidhi, said that the vehicle is designed to resemble a temple. The registration number of the vehicle is not visible.
Quoting The Hindu report, she said that alterations to registered vehicles are permissible only fire and ambulance vehicles.
Kanimozhi said that the police should have confiscated the vehicle immediately upon entry into Tamil Nadu. Instead, she said, that a very heavy security has been provided to the Rath.
The DMK has been protesting against the Rath Yatra, which was flagged off from Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh in February.
On Tuesday, DMK working president MK Stalin was detained by the police after he walked out of the Tamil Nadu assembly and sat on the roadside to protest the rath yatra undertaken by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) in the state.
Read More: Stalin detained for protesting VHP’s Ram Rajya Rath Yatra
Stalin has been opposing VHP’s Ram Rajya Rath Yatra that was entered Tamil Nadu on Tuesday, and called for a ban on the procession.
The 65-year-old son of Karunanidhi has said the Yatra will disturb peace and communal harmony in the state.
In a statement issued on Monday, Stalin had said those part of the yatra should be arrested and sent back to Uttar Pradesh.
“If the Yatra enters Tamil Nadu, the government should arrest those who are part of it and send them back to Uttar Pradesh. I strongly condemn the State government for granting permission for the Yatra,” he had said.
The Yatra has been organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad with an aim to mobilise support for building a Ram temple in Ayodhya.
But Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K Palaniswami defended the Yatra on the ground that it crossed five states — Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala — before entering Tamil Nadu.
The Yatra has already passed Rameshwaram and is headed for other parts of Tamil Nadu before re-entering Kerala at Thiruvananthapuram.
Meanwhile, reports claim that around 300 people participating in the Rath Yatra have been booked by Tamil Nadu Police on Friday for creating hindrance for the public while entering the state border.