Anti-Kudankulam activists and a Hindu outfit supporting its commissioning clashed here forcing an abrupt end to the fourth round of talks.
Anti-Kudankulam activists and a Hindu outfit supporting its commissioning clashed here today forcing an abrupt end to the fourth round of talks to break the impasse over the nuclear power plant project.
Trouble arose as Hindu Munnani activists, who had gathered at the Collectorate to present a memorandum in support of the project, came face to face with the members of People's Movement Against Nuclear Energy (PMANE).
The PMANE is spearheading the nearly five-month long stir against the project.
Police said the Hindu Munnani activists pelted stones at the vehicle in which the PMANE members arrived at the collectorate to take part in the talks between the central and state government-appointed expert committees.
Retaliating, a group of PMANE supporters attacked the Hindu Munnani workers with footwear, leading to a tense situation.
Seven Hindu Munnani volunteers, including its Vice-President V C Jayakumar, who led them, and three of PMANE were arrested, police said.
Some persons suffered "minor" injuries and some vehicles were damaged in the incident, they added.
Protesting the attack, more than 5,000 people of Idinthakarai, the epicentre of the protests against KNPP, gathered and resorted to picketing near the project site.
PMANE convenor SP Udhayakumar told reporters that they boycotted the talks, convened to clear the doubts of the villagers demanding the scrapping of the project citing safety concerns, as they were annoyed by the attack.
Official sources said the meeting could not be completed in view of the absence of the PMNAE representatives and it came to an abrupt end.
Udhayakumar accused Congress, which supports the project, of instigating Hindu 'fanatical' outfits to take to agitation and attack them.
On the other hand, Jayakumar said the project should be commissioned immediately to help people in Tamil Nadu which is hit by power cuts.
Stating that police had registered 147 cases against the PMANE agitators, he said its leaders should be arrested under the National Security Act.
"We are not going to engage in talks anymore. Muthunagayam (central) Committee is a farce," Udayakumar told PTI.
He also said that PMANE would observe a back day on February 4 when the proposed meeting by Congress in support of the project is to be held here.
Three rounds of talks between the expert committees held in November and December had failed to make any headway as the agitators demanded nothing less than scrapping of the project.
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