Udhayanidhi Stalin arrested from Chennai home over ‘vulgar’ remark against actor Trisha during rally | Chennai News

Udhayanidhi Stalin faced detention after a case was registered against him

CHENNAI: DMK leader and leader of opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin was arrested from his residence in Neelankarai on Tuesday after a case was registered against him over his allegedly objectionable remarks made during a rally on the Cauvery water dispute in Thanjavur.A police team led by Joint Commissioner of Police Dr P Vijayakumar took Udhayanidhi into custody from his residence and escorted him in a police vehicle. He will be taken to Thanjavur, where the FIR was registered in connection with his speech at Monday’s rally on the Cauvery water dispute.The detention came after Udhayanidhi moved the Madras high court seeking anticipatory bail, apprehending arrest in the case. When the matter was mentioned before Justice G K Ilanthiraiyan, the court agreed to hear the urgent plea and orally directed the police not to precipitate the issue until the petition was taken up.Speaking to reporters after being detained, Udhayanidhi dismissed the case as “forged” and said he would fight it legally. He alleged that since the TVK government came to power, it had been filing “fake cases” against DMK MLAs and indulging in “horse-trading.”During the rally, sections of the crowd began chanting “Trisha, Trisha”. After pausing briefly, Udhayanidhi allegedly remarked, “Whether the water reaches anywhere else or not, it should reach there,” before adding that he was referring to the Cauvery water.The controversy erupted after the remarks, with opposition parties accusing the DMK leader of making a double-entendre comment targeting Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay while responding to slogans raised by party workers.Based on a complaint filed by Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), Thanjavur police registered an FIR against Udhayanidhi under charges of promoting enmity between groups, provisions of the Information Technology Act, and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act.TVK also approached the National Commission for Women (NCW), alleging that Udhayanidhi’s remarks were “vulgar”, “objectifying” and “sexually suggestive”. In its complaint, the party sought legal action against the DMK leader, an unconditional public apology and intervention by the commission.TVK national spokesperson Pazha Selvakumar alleged that the remarks objectified women, undermined the dignity of women in public life and lowered the standards of political discourse. The party urged the NCW to examine the video footage of the speech and recommend action for alleged public obscenity and outraging the modesty of women.