TVK Councillors and DMK Councillors indulge in a war of words at the Thoothukudi Corporation council meeting on Friday.
| Photo Credit: RAJESH N
Thoothukudi Corporation Mayor Jegan Periyasamy alleged that some TVK cadre were threatening officials and contractors by invoking the name of a Minister to secure work for themselves,He made the allegation while addressing the Corporation Council meeting held here on Friday.Addressing the meeting, Mr. Jegan said that Thoothukudi Corporation was progressing towards historic development through various initiatives undertaken over the past four years.“When we assumed office, drinking water was supplied once in seven days. But, we have now ensured daily water supply,” he added.Highlighting that the recurrent issue of waterlogging had also been addressed, he noted that the number of routes for draining rainwater has been increased from three to 14. The Mayor added that several measures had also been taken to make the city greener and improve its appearance. “Even if there is a change in government in Tamil Nadu, our work will continue,” he said.As a Corporation employee began reading out the agenda, ward 51 Councillor Manthiramoorthy, who had switched from AIADMK to TVK and ward 17 Councillor Ramar, who had switched from DMK to TVK raised several concerns.Mr. Manthiramoorthy insisted that a resolution thanking the Tamil Nadu government for allocating ₹90 crore for the development of the Thoothukudi new bus stand should be passed. Meanwhile, Mr. Ramar demanded that the name of Minister P. Mathan Raja be included on the plaque of the newly opened fair price shop in his ward.Following this, DMK Councillors came forward and raised objections, leading to a heated exchange.Intervening, Mr. Jegan said the expansion plan for the new bus stand had been prepared by the Corporation and it had been seeking funds for the project for the past two years. “Now, with a change in government, funds have been allocated. This is a DMK government project. Therefore, we cannot pass a resolution thanking this government,” he said.Mr. Jegan stressed the Corporation had prepared plans for the next 10 years to ensure further development of Thoothukudi, and these structure and development plans of Thoothukudi cannot be altered, regardless of who was in power.He further noted, “TVK cadre have been threatening officials and contractors by invoking the name of a Minister and demanding that works in Thoothukudi be awarded only to them. I will personally lead the effort to lodge a complaint with the police in this regard.”Following this, the TVK Councillors staged a walkout from the meeting, raising slogans against the Mayor and DMK Councillors.Thoothukudi Corporation Commissioner S. Priyanka and other officials were present at the meeting. Published - August 28, 2026 07:27 pm IST
