CHENNAI: AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday condemned the Stalin government after police in Villuppuram reportedly failed to act against an accused who had abducted a woman, harassed and subjected her to threats for more than six months, instead filing a case against the victim.

The DMK functionaries accused of kidnapping, intimidation and continuous sexual exploitation are scot free; on the other hand, the police have filed an FIR in a manner that protects the accused and criminalises the victim, Palaniswami said.

In the past 54 months of DMK rule, Tamil Nadu has witnessed an alarming rise in crimes against women, he said.

The shocking incident in Villupuram once again exposes the total collapse of law and order under the DMK regime and the failure of Chief Minister MK Stalin to protect women or ensure justice.

The Stalin-model DMK government has turned Tamil Nadu into a state where women cannot step outside without fear. EPS said that the party would hold massive candlelight protests across the Villupuram district on Thursday at 6 pm, led by former minister and district secretary CV Shanmugam.

Meanwhile, the AIADMK chief asked the district secretaries to ensure that no AIADMK voter is left out of the voters' list during the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

He asked Booth-Level Agents (BLA-2) to visit every household and ensure that the completed applications are returned to the Booth-Level Officers (BLO). Once the draft voter list is released, district secretaries must carefully verify whether the names of deceased persons and those who have relocated have been removed, Palaniswami instructed.