CHENNAI: DMK leader and leader of opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin was detained 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 for questioningThe 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.The controversy erupted after a DMK rally in Thanjavur on Monday, where Udhayanidhi allegedly made a double-entendre remark targeting Tamil Nadu chief minister C Joseph Vijay while responding to slogans raised by party workers. What began as a protest over the Cauvery water-sharing dispute quickly snowballed into a political flashpoint, with opposition parties accusing the DMK leader of using objectionable language.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.The controversy has shifted the political focus away from the Cauvery issue, with the war of words between the DMK and its rivals now dominating the state’s political discourse.
