DMK and allies boycott Governor's R-Day event

The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)-led INDIA bloc in Tamil Nadu on Sunday boycotted Governor RN Ravi's reception hosted for Republic Day, a day after the latter admonished the state in his R-day eve address.

- Divya Chandrababu

CHENNAI: The ruling DMK's allies, including Congress and Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, also skipped the event hosted annually at Raj Bhavan.

"The decision to boycott the event was taken even before the Governor's address last week. It was based on his actions such as walking out of the assembly without reading his customary address," said a DMK leader on condition of anonymity. The event was attended by the state Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unit, and main opposition AIADMK was represented by its organising secretary D Jayakumar. Though the Raj Bhavan had invited actor Vijay, who launched his political party Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam last year, he also skipped the event.