Palaniswami slams TVK-led government over convict’s escape in Coimbatore

Edappadi K. Palaniswami. File | Photo Credit: E. Lakshmi Narayanan

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami on Saturday (October 31, 2026) likened the latest incident in which a convict escaped from police custody in Coimbatore to an episode in a television serial.

Expressing shock over the incident, Mr. Palaniswami, in a post on his social media handle, said that the escape of prisoners could be added as a chapter to a souvenir on the “achievements” of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK)-led government, alongside the deterioration of law and order, drug smuggling, inflation, power supply disruptions, and public debt.

The escape occurred despite the publication of news reports about Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s warning to prison officials. Mr. Palaniswami wondered why such incidents of prisoners escaping from custody were occurring frequently. How could people have confidence in a government that could not properly guard its prisons, the AIADMK leader asked.

Power supply

AMMK founder T.T.V. Dhinakaran, in a post on his social media handle, referred to the power supply disruptions at the Meenakshi Amman temple in Madurai during the visit of Mr. Palaniswami and Vice-President C.P. Radhakrishnan.

He criticised the State power utility for functioning “arbitrarily” and being unaware of its own actions. Instead of offering “silly reasons,” the Energy Department and the Chief Minister should undertake administrative reforms to ensure uninterrupted power supply.

Published - October 31, 2026 04:52 pm IST