Reporter's diary: Captain uncool, and his never-ending watch saga

CHENNAI: Yet again, it’s Annamalai and a watch. The former IPS officer lost his cool during the Wednesday’s presser at the party’s headquarters in Kamalalayam. He was in his element coupled with name-calling and singling out journos for doing their job.

This time, when a journalist who sought his response to an allegation that his watch — Bell & Ross Men’s limited edition Rafale French Fighter Watch — was equipped with a snooping device, Annamalai unbuckled it and handed it over the journo and gave him 24 hours to to prove it. Of course the scribe returned it, telling Annamalai to chill.

However, the watch saga does not end here. It continues to haunt him with State Electricity Minister V Senthilbalaji starting a debate on social media, wondering how the owner of four goats managed to get such an expensive watch. “Can he share the bills?” the minister asked Annamalai, who in turn, was ready to produce the same. But only during his padayatra, which may commence in April.

However, what shocked everyone was when he said that he was wearing the watch as a sign of “nationalism” as it was made using the parts of a Rafale fighter aircrafts that he cannot fly. This kicked up a storm of debate on the social media with netizens trying to find out whether the watch was made of Rafale or was it a lie?