<p>Chennai: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/aiadmk">AIADMK </a>general secretary <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/edappadi-k-palaniswami">Edappadi K Palaniswami</a> has landed in a row for threatening that “ambulance drivers” would be turned into patients if another ambulance passed through his campaign route, after alleging that this was a “deliberate design” of the DMK dispensation.</p><p>Palaniswami, who was addressing a rally in Anaicut, was visibly peeved when an ambulance crossed his van atop which he was addressing the people. As an ambulance entered the crowd, Palaniswami, in a video clip, was seen asking his people to check whether the vehicle had a patient by stopping it.</p>.Coalition woes for BJP? Shah says party to team up with AIADMK but EPS differs.<p>As the ambulance came close to his vehicle, Palaniswami asked his cadres to note down the registration number of the vehicle and file a complaint with the police, besides alleging that the ambulance driver was creating a ruckus.</p><p>“Whenever I address a public meeting, an ambulance would cross the venue. Isn’t the government ashamed of such tactics? The government should have the guts to take me on directly. They shouldn’t let an ambulance inside. You can’t change people’s minds. I've seen 20-30 ambulances wading through the people in my campaign,” he alleged.</p><p>“There's no patient in the ambulance. I warn the government that if an ambulance crosses my campaign again without a patient, we'll ensure that there's a patient inside. The driver will be the patient, and he may have to go to the hospital,” Palaniswami said.</p><p>However, the ambulance driver said he was on the way to the Anaicut government hospital to shift a patient who was undergoing treatment for abdominal pain. </p><p>“The ambulance was going from Pallikonda to Anaicut, and it got stuck at the AIADMK meeting. Despite the ambulance taking an alternate route suggested by the police, it got stuck in the meeting,” police said.</p><p>Palaniswami’s outbursts created a political storm, with Health Minister Ma Subramanian refuting the AIADMK leader’s accusation that the DMK was behind sending ambulances to his meeting. </p><p>“There are about 1,330 ambulances operating under the 108 scheme in Tamil Nadu. The ambulances have to reach accident sites and emergencies without any delay. It is unfounded to say that they are being used to disturb a political meeting,” Subramanian said.</p><p>The minister said Palaniswami was seen threatening ambulance drivers and healthcare staff, which amounts to threatening the health system itself. “Such conduct is unbecoming of a Chief Minister,” he added.</p>
<p>Chennai: <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/aiadmk">AIADMK </a>general secretary <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/edappadi-k-palaniswami">Edappadi K Palaniswami</a> has landed in a row for threatening that “ambulance drivers” would be turned into patients if another ambulance passed through his campaign route, after alleging that this was a “deliberate design” of the DMK dispensation.</p><p>Palaniswami, who was addressing a rally in Anaicut, was visibly peeved when an ambulance crossed his van atop which he was addressing the people. As an ambulance entered the crowd, Palaniswami, in a video clip, was seen asking his people to check whether the vehicle had a patient by stopping it.</p>.Coalition woes for BJP? Shah says party to team up with AIADMK but EPS differs.<p>As the ambulance came close to his vehicle, Palaniswami asked his cadres to note down the registration number of the vehicle and file a complaint with the police, besides alleging that the ambulance driver was creating a ruckus.</p><p>“Whenever I address a public meeting, an ambulance would cross the venue. Isn’t the government ashamed of such tactics? The government should have the guts to take me on directly. They shouldn’t let an ambulance inside. You can’t change people’s minds. I've seen 20-30 ambulances wading through the people in my campaign,” he alleged.</p><p>“There's no patient in the ambulance. I warn the government that if an ambulance crosses my campaign again without a patient, we'll ensure that there's a patient inside. The driver will be the patient, and he may have to go to the hospital,” Palaniswami said.</p><p>However, the ambulance driver said he was on the way to the Anaicut government hospital to shift a patient who was undergoing treatment for abdominal pain. </p><p>“The ambulance was going from Pallikonda to Anaicut, and it got stuck at the AIADMK meeting. Despite the ambulance taking an alternate route suggested by the police, it got stuck in the meeting,” police said.</p><p>Palaniswami’s outbursts created a political storm, with Health Minister Ma Subramanian refuting the AIADMK leader’s accusation that the DMK was behind sending ambulances to his meeting. </p><p>“There are about 1,330 ambulances operating under the 108 scheme in Tamil Nadu. The ambulances have to reach accident sites and emergencies without any delay. It is unfounded to say that they are being used to disturb a political meeting,” Subramanian said.</p><p>The minister said Palaniswami was seen threatening ambulance drivers and healthcare staff, which amounts to threatening the health system itself. “Such conduct is unbecoming of a Chief Minister,” he added.</p>