How T.N. Seshan’s airport arrival led to standoff with Jayalalithaa and attack on a star hotel

In November-December 1994, Tamil Nadu recovered itself astatine the centre of an bonzer governmental storm—one that unfolded implicit conscionable a week, but near down lasting questions astir power, authority, and intimidation. The play played retired astir wholly successful 2 locations separated by conscionable a fewer kilometres: Madras Airport and the Taj Coromandel successful Nungambakkam.

At the bosom of the confrontation was T.N. Seshan, past Chief Election Commissioner of India, a antheral already feared and admired successful adjacent measurement for his relentless run against electoral malpractice. Tamil Nadu was ruled astatine the clip by the AIADMK, led by Chief Minister Jayalalitha (as her sanction was spelt then). Relations betwixt Seshan and the ruling enactment were strained, and events soon showed conscionable however combustible that hostility had become.

On November 27, 1994, Seshan landed astatine Madras Airport from New Delhi astatine 9.20 a.m. What should person been a regular accomplishment rapidly turned into a standoff. Senior constabulary officers informed him that hundreds of AIADMK supporters had gathered extracurricular the airdrome and on the way to the Taj Coromandel, wherever helium was to stay, waving achromatic flags successful protest. The police, citing superior law-and-order concerns, refused to determination him immediately.

The trigger

The choler stemmed from alleged defamatory references to erstwhile Chief Ministers C.N. Annadurai and M.G. Ramachandran successful Seshan’s in-the-news biography, Seshan: An Intimate Story, written by K. Govindan Kutty. The protests were not simply symbolic. Roads were blocked adjacent Kathipara Junction and Tirisoolam, disrupting postulation and delaying an Indian Airlines formation to Bangalore (now Bengaluru) scheduled for 11.45 a.m., arsenic passengers struggled to scope the airport.

Stranded for 8 hours

For astir 8 hours, Seshan remained efficaciously captive wrong the airdrome terminal. As the play unfolded, helium made it known that helium viewed the concern arsenic a sedate nonaccomplishment of governance and intended to study the substance straight to President Shankar Dayal Sharma and Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao. It was lone astir 5 p.m., aft the assemblage was yet brought nether control, that helium was escorted to his hotel.

Jayalalithaa’s accusations

The governmental fallout was contiguous and fierce. On November 29, Chief Minister Jayalalitha announced that her authorities would nonstop its ain study to the President and the Centre, accusing the Chief Election Commissioner of threatening elder State officials and demanding enactment against him. In a sharply worded connection reported by The Hindu, she accused Seshan of passing disconnected a idiosyncratic sojourn to be a wedding arsenic an authoritative tour, applying—she said—a “different yardstick” to himself than to elected leaders.

Her disapproval grew much personal. Describing Seshan arsenic the “epitome of unbridled egotism,” she accused him of utilizing demeaning connection that insulted Tamil Nadu’s civilization and damaged the State’s prestige. 

She alleged helium had rejected a constabulary connection to instrumentality an alternate way from the airdrome and besides spoken successful a threatening mode to Chief Secretary N. Haribhaskar and DGP S. Sripal. His conduct, she claimed, had forced the constabulary to edifice to a lathi charge, including connected women protesters. She said the constabulary had to edifice to a lathi complaint connected demonstrators including women due to the fact that of his visit. “Why had the CEC rejected the alternate route? One could recognise his tremendous ego erstwhile helium insisted connected the way being cleared of thousands of demonstrators for 1 idiosyncratic to travel,” she charged. 

Seshan’s gathering with President, PM

Seshan, for his part, took the substance consecutive to the top. After returning to New Delhi, helium met Prime Minister Narasimha Rao connected December 2 and aboriginal that time held a private, half-hour-long gathering with President Sharma astatine Rashtrapati Bhavan to contiguous his mentation of events.

By then, Jayalalitha had already sent her report, accusing him of “high-handed behaviour” and of causing embarrassment to officials and hardship to the public.

Even arsenic this warfare of words played retired successful Delhi, events successful Madras took a acold much ominous turn.

Attack connected Taj Coromandel

Late connected the nighttime of December 1, astir 11.30 p.m., the calm extracurricular the Taj Coromandel was shattered. Nearly 150 men arrived astatine the prima edifice successful autorickshaws, immoderate dressed successful black, galore carrying weapons. They blocked postulation connected Nungambakkam High Road and stormed the hotel.

According to reports in The Hindu, the attackers divided into groups. One radical forced its mode into the car park, assaulting information personnel, smashing telephones, and damaging vehicles. Another destroyed lighting fixtures on the driveway, threatened staff, and broke done solid doors to participate the lobby. Hotel employees acted quickly, ushering guests to safer areas and locking wedding attendees wrong rooms.

A informing

After leaving down a way of destruction—damaged property, dozens of vandalised vehicles of guests, and a shaken unit and guests—the attackers fled successful astir 25 car rickshaws. Shortly aft midnight, an anonymous caller telephoned the edifice and delivered a chilling message: the onslaught was a informing not to big Seshan again.

The pursuing morning, the edifice absorption sought the Chief Minister’s idiosyncratic involution and constabulary protection. At a property conference, Shankar Menon, vice-president of the Taj Group of Hotels (South), said a ceremonial missive had been handed implicit to the Chief Minister’s bureau regarding the incident.

The study besides noted that Seshan was ever booked successful the edifice arsenic a State impermanent by the Tamil Nadu government’s protocol department. His bills were settled by the State government, and it was lone astatine the petition of the section acrophobic that Seshan was hosted successful the edifice for 2 days connected November 27 and 28, 1994.

Karunanidhi’s comment

On December 4, Revenue Minister and AIADMK lawman wide caput S.D. Somasundaram publically condemned the attack, denied immoderate engagement by his party, and insisted that the AIADMK believed lone successful antiauthoritarian methods. He accused governmental opponents of exploiting the incidental and said work could beryllium fixed lone aft a elaborate investigation. Responding sharply to DMK person M. Karunanidhi’s remark that Tamil Nadu was being tally similar an “Idi Amin government,” Somasundaram retorted that Karunanidhi could assertion recognition for teaching adjacent Idi Amin.

In the weeks that followed, astir 15 radical were arrested successful transportation with the attack, immoderate of whom were aboriginal released connected bail. But the episode—beginning with a delayed airdrome accomplishment and ending successful a convulsive edifice rampage—remained 1 of the astir startling confrontations betwixt law authorization and governmental powerfulness successful Tamil Nadu’s caller history.