In a day of high political drama, the Leader of the Opposition in the Tamil Nadu Assembly Udhayanidhi Stalin was on Tuesday arrested for his alleged double entendre alluding to popular actor Trisha Krishnan and was released some four hours later after orders from the Madras High Court.
Soon after his release, the DMK chief and former chief minister MK Stalin, father of Udhayanidhi, fiercely attacked Mr C Joseph Vijay calling him an “inept dummy chief minister,” who, he said, roamed around like a reel hero having failed to protect the interests of the state in securing state’s water share from the Cauvery project and accused the ruling TVK of “arrogance.” He also cautioned the actor-turned-politician chief minister that “Arrogance leads to destruction and persistent arrogance only accelerates it.”
His arrest followed his double entendre remarks while addressing a public meeting in Thanjavur on Monday. The remarks were made in response to the crowd mentioning an actor’s name in response to a comment on what was important to Chief Minister Joseph Vijay. Addressing a protest gathering at Thanjavur on the Cauvery dispute, the LoP took a swipe at the Chief Minister, charging that while Tamil Nadu had not got a drop of water, Mr Vijay remained unconcerned.
Denying his speech was vulgar, Udhayanidhi Stalin also accused the TVK government of administrative failure and inability to secure Cauvery water or oppose the Mekedatu dam. “The incompetent dummy Chief Minister has neither been able to bring Cauvery water nor speak up to stop the Mekedatu dam. Farmers are shedding tears in agony, while ministers are shedding tears after watching a film acted in by the Chief Minister. A joker cabinet has taken charge in Tamil Nadu.”
Stalin Sr. claimed the ruling government had so far failed to provide any substantive response to these allegations. “The government has failed to respond to those charges and has instead resorted to arresting Udhayanidhi to divert attention from the Cauvery issue,” MK Stalin said. “The timing of the arrest — a day before the state budget session – is an attempt to keep the Leader of the Opposition out of the assembly,” he added.
“From the moment he assumed office, instead of striving to fulfill promises, Chief Minister Vijay – content to roam as a mere reels creator -must now awaken to his responsibilities and act accordingly,” he said. “Ever since coming to power, Chief Minister Vijay has done nothing but arrest those who criticise him — his ministers, or his government. Arrests follow tweets or video statements. Such actions have targeted Assembly members like Anitha Radhakrishnan and Markandeyan,” he said.
“Students and youth protesting against NEET exams were not allowed to do so. Chaotic attacks were unleashed on those who did protest. Locking down Chennai’s Marina Beach was the height of fascism. Farmers’ spontaneous protests were branded as instigated by opposition parties. Permission was denied for a Dravidar Kazhag vehicle procession spreading anti-NEET awareness. In this very vein, the BJP government has now unleashed an arrest action against Opposition Leader Udhayanidhi, who led and spoke at a protest for farmers,’ he added.
DMK leaders have alleged that the TVK government repeatedly uses arrests to silence political critics, opposition leaders, students, farmers, and protesters. The party has also demanded the immediate release of all party cadres arrested during the state-wide protests.
During a speech in Thanjavur on the Cauvery water dispute with Karnataka, Udhayanidhi Stalin was interrupted by chants of ‘Trisha, Trisha”, from the audience. He then made a comment which the TVK claimed had a vulgar double meaning. Stalin Junior and his party have been at the receiving end of criticism from various quarters since.
The TVK has accused him of lowering the standards of political discourse and dignity of women. MDMK’s Durai Vaiko said: “The issue was about Cauvery and the sufferings of the Tamil Nadu farmers. It is highly condemnable that the Opposition leader Udhayanidhi Stalin has uttered such derogatory comments. It goes against women. I condemn it. It was not a stage to settle personal scores. It is unfortunate.” Singer and dubbing artist Chinmayi Sripada and actor and BJP Tamil Nadu Vice President Khushboo Sundar also criticised Udhayanidhi Stalin.
The issue led to Udhayanidhi’s arrest on Tuesday. He was charged under various sections of law, including use of obscene words, outraging the modesty of women, promoting enmity, provocation with an intent to cause riot, and criminal intimidation. Provisions under the TN Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act have also been invoked, sources added.
He was released after questioning following an order from the Madras High Court nearly four hours after his arrest and taken to Thanjavur for questioning. The Madras High Court had ordered the Tamil Nadu Police to release the Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin after completing his questioning in connection with the case. The High Court directed the DMK leader to cooperate with the investigation as and when required.
During the court hearing, Advocate General Vijay Narayan appearing for Thanjavur police said Udhayanidhi was taken to Thanjavur but the police do not intend to remand him to judicial custody. The state only intends to question him and release him on station bail, the Advocate general said.
Party sources said an anticipatory bail petition was filed immediately after police arrived at Udhayanidhi’s Neelankarai residence for questioning him in connection with his remarks made at a protest meeting on the Cauvery issue on Monday at Thanjavur. “Did I mention anyone’s name except the Chief Minister’s? (at the protest held in Thanjavur) Then why do you think this is happening? Let the court decide,” Stalin told reporters before being escorted away by police.
He has charged by police under various sections of law, including the one relating to the use of obscene words and insulting the modesty of a woman. Promoting enmity, provocation with an intent to cause riot, and criminal intimidation were among the nine sections invoked against Udhayanidhi. Provisions under the TN Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act have also been invoked, sources added.
Chief Minister’s Vijay’s TVK escalated its protest against Udhayanidhi’s alleged offensive remark by filing complaints with both the local police and the National Commission for Women (NCW). A police complaint was lodged at the Thanjavur East Police Station by S Bairavi, the TVK’s Central District Women’s Wing Organiser for Thanjavur.
The complaint alleged that when the crowd chanted “Trisha, Trisha” during the leader of the opposition’s speech on the Cauvery issue on August 3, he responded with an obscene, double-meaning remark. The complainant accused him and DMK IT wing office-bearers of intentionally degrading women, causing mental agony to the actor and women in general, and deliberately circulating a 2:39-minute video of the incident on the social media platform X to cause public unrest.
Reacting strongly to Udhayanidhi’s arrest, DMK cadres staged protests across the state.
Responding to criticism from some political leaders, Stalin maintained that Udhayanidhi had neither made obscene remarks nor targeted any individual during his speech. He thanked leaders who condemned the arrest but expressed disappointment with those who criticised Udhayanidhi without verifying the facts. Stalin asserted that Udhayanidhi was a responsible politician and said if he ever made an unintended remark, he would not hesitate to apologise.
In one of his sharpest attacks, Stalin accused Vijay of focusing more on public image than governance. He said the Chief Minister had been acting like a “reels creator” instead of delivering on the promises made to the people and urged him to start functioning responsibly. Stalin also demanded the immediate release of all DMK workers arrested across Tamil Nadu for participating in the Cauvery protest.