Chennai: Tamil Nadu’s Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin was released on station bail on Tuesday after being questioned by the police, hours after he was taken into custody in connection with a case registered against him.
His release followed an order from the Madras High Court directing the police to let him go after completing the inquiry on Tuesday itself.
Udhayanidhi Stalin was questioned for about one-and-a-half hours at the Sengipatti Police Station in Thanjavur district in the presence of Superintendent of Police Sundaravathanam before being released on station bail.
He had spent nearly eight hours in police custody by the time the questioning began.
Police had initially planned to take Udhayanidhi Stalin to the Thanjavur South Police Station for questioning. However, with a large number of DMK cadres gathering outside the station, the police shifted the venue to Sengipatti.
The DMK leader initially objected to being questioned at Sengipatti and reportedly refused to get out of the police vehicle. After prolonged discussions with police officials, he eventually entered the station and cooperated with the inquiry.
Following his release, Udhayanidhi Stalin emerged to a reception from DMK workers gathered in the area. Standing in an open vehicle, he waved to party cadres and acknowledged their support.
Before he was taken into custody, Udhayanidhi Stalin’s counsel had moved the Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail.
During the hearing, the state informed the court that the government had no intention of seeking his judicial remand and that he would be granted station bail after questioning.
Recording the government’s submission, the High Court directed that Udhayanidhi Stalin be released after the inquiry on Tuesday and that questioning should not be prolonged until the following day.
Meanwhile, DMK President and former Chief Minister M.K. Stalin strongly condemned the police action, describing the arrest as an attempt by the ruling TVK government to divert attention from what he termed its failures. Stalin alleged that the government had targeted the Leader of the Opposition to prevent him from attending the state Assembly’s Budget session beginning on Wednesday.
The arrest triggered protests by DMK cadres at several places, with supporters gathering outside police stations and other locations as Udhayanidhi Stalin was taken from Chennai to Thanjavur for questioning.
(IANS)
