Prayers for Jayalalithaa; vigil, chaos outside Apollo

Chennai: With prayers on their lips, AIADMK leaders and cadre waited anxiously outside the Apollo Hospitals since Sunday evening after the news came out that their leader J. Jayalalithaa had suffered a cardiac arrest.

The Chennai police had a tough time controlling the crowd outside the hospital on the busy Greams Road as hundreds of people kept thronging the institution. Chest-beating women of the AIADMK started wailing and praying that the chief minister would emerge soon stronger from the hospital.

As the crowd swelled outside the main gate of the Apollo Hospitals, where Ms Jayalalithaa was admitted on September 22, the police had to resort to mild force to quell the people who, at one point, tried to break into the gate and enter the hospital.

The police presence at the Apollo Hospitals was beefed up since Sunday evening and it was further strengthened late in the night after the official bulletin was put out by the hospital that confirmed the Chief Minister had suffered a cardiac arrest.

DGP T.K. Rajendran and Chennai police commissioner George rushed to the hospital and were monitoring the situation.

As ministers and party leaders rushed inside the hospital, cadres waited outside. “I only want my Amma to come back. I am sure she will come back much stronger,” said a woman cadre.

Amma is everything for the people of Tamil Nadu and for the AIADMK,” said a woman cadre, with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Another cadre, who had come all the way from Ayanavaram after hearing the news that Ms Jayalalithaa suffered a cardiac arrest, said he would leave the hospital premises only after hearing the news that she is well. “I don’t want to hear anything other than the news that she has recovered. I only want that,” he said.