Madurai:
Pro-Tamil activists in Madurai burnt an effigy of UPA's Presidential candidate Pranab Mukherjee ahead of his visit to Chennai today.
Police arrested 34 members of the Naam Thamizhar Iyakkam founded by Tamil actor Seeman.
Activists alleged that Pranab Mukherjee did nothing to stop the killing of Sri Lankan Tamil civilians in Sri Lanka during his tenure as External Affairs Minister and as a key cabinet Minister of the UPA government. They argued that it's not proper for him to come to Tamil Nadu seeking the support of MPs and MLAs in the state.
Mr Mukherjee was in the state to seek DMK's chief M Karunanidhi's support in the upcoming presidential polls.
Human rights organisations and a UN appointed committee have estimated that around forty thousand Lankan Tamil civilians could have been killed in the Sri Lankan army's final assault against the LTTE in 2009.
Although India was initially reluctant to vote in support of a US sponsored resolution against Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council, ultimately it buckled under pressure following pressure from political parties in Tamil Nadu, including its ally the DMK.