Chennai, Sept 21:
TVK candidate P Sathyabama was forced to suspend her campaign in the Dharapuram Assembly constituency on Monday after a group of farmers confronted her over water scarcity and the release of water from the Parambikulam-Aliyar Project (PAP) to the Uppar Dam.
The farmers surrounded Sathyabama’s campaign vehicle and questioned her over the water crisis. They alleged that she had failed to protect the interests of farmers dependent on the PAP irrigation system.
The protesters accused Sathyabama of exerting pressure on Water Resources Department officials to release water from the PAP system to the Uppar Dam for political reasons. They opposed the move, stating that diverting water could affect irrigation requirements in parts of Coimbatore and Tirupur districts.
The farmers maintained that only surplus water from the PAP system should be released to the Uppar Dam and urged that the interests of farmers dependent on the irrigation network be protected.
As the protest intensified, Sathyabama attempted to pacify the farmers from her campaign vehicle. She said she would not take any decision that would adversely affect PAP farmers and maintained that she had only sought stringent action against water theft.
However, the protesters continued to oppose her campaign and demanded that she stop canvassing in the area. Police personnel intervened and attempted to bring the situation under control.
With tension continuing, Sathyabama eventually left the area, bringing her campaign programme to an end.
Sathyabama had earlier represented Dharapuram as an AIADMK MLA. She later resigned from the Assembly and joined the TVK, necessitating the bypoll.