An ambulance crew on its way to rescue a collapsed man came under attack during AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami’s (EPS) campaign on Sunday.

EPS was scheduled to address meetings at Mannachanallur, Thuraiyur, and Musiri. Before he could reach Thuraiyur, a large crowd had gathered at Athur Road, where a 108 ambulance was reportedly called after a man fainted.

As the ambulance attempted to navigate through the dense gathering, the driver and a woman technician were surrounded, assaulted, and their vehicle damaged. Police later rescued them and admitted them to hospital.

“I work with the 108 ambulance service. We received a call that someone had collapsed near MSK Mandapam. When we tried to reach the spot, the crowd stopped us, asking who called us and accused us of trying to disperse the meeting. They damaged the vehicle and attacked us,” the driver said, adding that the woman technician, who is pregnant, was pulled out by the crowd and is now suffering from neck and shoulder pain. Videos of the attack have since gone viral.

Last week, during a campaign in Anaicut, Vellore district, EPS alleged that the DMK government was deliberately sending empty ambulances through his rallies to disrupt his programmes. Claiming that this had happened at “at least 30 meetings,” EPS warned: “If an empty ambulance comes, the person driving the vehicle will become the patient.”

An ambulance driver present at the Anaicut rally had also said he was manhandled by AIADMK cadres before being allowed to attend to a patient. His account, coupled with EPS’s warning, had already triggered concern among health workers.

Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramaniam slammed EPS’s conduct, calling it “indecent” and pointing out that the state operates 1,330 ambulances on life-saving duty across rural and urban regions.

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