Around 30 members of Periyar Dravida Kazhagam were arrested by the police for assembling at the airport to stage a protest against the visit of a Sri Lankan delegation which cancelled its programme at the last minute.

The cadres raised slogans denouncing Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

They condemned a “derogatory” article against Chief Minister Jayalalithaa that appeared on the Sri Lankan defence ministry website and criticised the island nation for refusing to grant visas to UN war crimes investigators to probe rights abuses by both security forces and LTTE cadres.

The members were arrested by the police and let off in the evening. (The Hindu)