The acting Mayor of Chennai, R Thiagarajan of the AIADMK, is reported to have taken refuge in Mumbai under the patronage of Union Minister Mani Shankar Aiyer. Reason: To escape the anger of party chief J Jayalalithaa, who reportedly got a whiff of his plan to defect to the Congress along with 12 councillors, sources close to him said.Fearing for his life, Thiagarajan’s wife today filed an affidavit in the Madras High Court, seeking restoration of protection to her family. Her lawyer said five constables, including a personal security officer provided to Thiagarajan as acting Mayor, was withdrawn a few months ago. In her affidavit, Jothi has expressed fear that “her husband would be imprisoned under some pretext and harmed when he is in prison.”Thiagarajan, on his part, has been calling up local newspapers, telling them that he was not fleeing from law and would be back in the city soon.Asked about plans to rejoin the Congress, Thiagarajan, speaking to The Indian Express over phone from Mumbai, said: ‘‘Right now I, am in the AIADMK, but I cannot say anything about the future.’’ Sources said Thiagarajan was hoping to join the Congress well before the 2006 Assembly elections along with five councillors.But there is resistance in the Congress against his re-entry into the party. The deputy general secretary of its ally DMK, M K Stalin, is said to be particularly miffed over moves to take back Thiagarajan.
