Chennai: The DMK Youth Wing on Tuesday strongly condemned the arrest of Tamil Nadu’s Leader of the Opposition and its Secretary Udhayanidhi Stalin, accusing the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) government of using police action to avoid answering questions over its handling of the Cauvery water dispute.
In a statement issued following Udhayanidhi Stalin’s arrest, the Youth Wing alleged that the action demonstrated the government’s inability to politically counter the issues raised by the Opposition and claimed that the case against him was motivated by political considerations.
The organisation rejected allegations that the former Deputy Chief Minister had made vulgar or objectionable remarks during his speech at a public meeting in Thanjavur, maintaining that he had not referred to any individual and accused his political opponents of deliberately interpreting his comments as containing double entendres.
According to the Youth Wing, the government had chosen to proceed against Udhayanidhi Stalin at a time when he was preparing to question it in the Assembly over several issues, particularly the Cauvery dispute.
The statement alleged that the arrest was an attempt to prevent the Leader of the Opposition from confronting the government during the upcoming Assembly session and to divert public attention from questions surrounding the state’s response to the Cauvery water issue.
Taking aim at Chief Minister Vijay, the Youth Wing claimed that dialogues from his films contained language that could be considered more objectionable than the remarks attributed to Udhayanidhi Stalin. It alleged that swear words had also been used in Vijay’s last film and questioned what it described as the TVK’s selective outrage over political speeches.
The organisation also accused the ruling party of maintaining silence when BJP leader Nainar Nagenthran allegedly made remarks linking an actor with the Chief Minister. It questioned why the TVK had not reacted with similar intensity to those comments.
The Youth Wing said criticism of the government and questions over matters affecting Tamil Nadu could not be suppressed through arrests or criminal cases.
Reiterating its support for Udhayanidhi Stalin, the organisation maintained that the controversy surrounding his Thanjavur speech was being used to shift the political debate away from the Cauvery dispute. It alleged that the arrest was aimed at weakening the Opposition ahead of the Assembly session and asserted that the DMK would continue raising issues concerning the state despite the government’s action.
(IANS)
