Chennai, June 27: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami on Wednesday said a total of 31,269 protests were held in the state in 2017 and blamed political parties and others for staging the protests to gain political mileage.
Speaking in the Assembly, Palaniswami said the protests were held by political parties, government employees, workers, students, religious organisations and others.
He said some political parties and organisations were trying to convert the state into a protest arena.
"Their true aim is to gain political mileage and not public welfare," Palaniswami said.
Citing data from the Bureau of Police Research and Development, Palniswami said 15 per cent of all protests in the country were held in Tamil Nadu.
On an average, 47 protests were held daily, he said.
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Srinagar (PTI): Peoples Democratic Party chief Mehbooba Mufti on Saturday urged the Jammu and Kashmir Police to release those arrested for staging protests in the Valley against the killing of Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in a joint US-Israel strike on February 28.
“Scores of protesters, including women, have been arrested across Kashmir for peacefully participating in rallies in the wake of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei's martyrdom.
“Authorities had assured their families that they would be released soon. But, unfortunately, this hasn't been the case. Urge Jammu and Kashmir Police to consider their release at the earliest,” Mufti said in a post on X.
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Kashmir, which is home to about 15 lakh Shias, saw major protests at the Lal Chowk and Saida Kadal in Srinagar, Budgam, Bandipora, Anantnag and Pulwama after the news of Khamenei's killing spread, forcing the authorities to impose restrictions, which were lifted on Saturday morning.
While the protests were largely peaceful, minor clashes broke out at a few places between the security forces and the protesters, prompting the former to use force to maintain law and order.
The US and Israel launched military strikes on Iran on February 28, killing Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader since 1989.
Following the military offensive, Iran has carried out a wave of attacks mainly targeting Israeli and American military bases in several Gulf countries, including the UAE, Bahrain, Kuwait, Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
In the last few days, the conflict has widened significantly with attacks and counter-attacks by both sides.
