Stalin says cops target Opposition leaders to please goverment, warns of ramifications

CHENNAI: DMK chief MK Stalin on Monday condemned the arrest of party MLA GV Markandayan, accusing the police of acting unlawfully to please the ruling establishment, warning that "there will be consequences" if the department doesn't act in accordance with the law and their conscience.

He alleged that the TVK government was targeting Opposition leaders and supporters who expose the shortcomings of the ruling dispensation. After failing to act against a sitting minister accused of misconduct in public and in a case involving the alleged gang sexual assault of a woman member of the ruling party, police personnel were quick to arrest critics over political remarks, the former Chief Minister claimed.

Questioning the functioning of the government, Stalin asked whether "the rule of law or the rule of Satan" prevailed in the State.

DMK president MK Stalin accused the ruling party of acting in a manner devoid of democratic values. Describing the TVK government as a "take diversion model" government, he alleged that the police had been continuously targeting former DMK ministers, MLAs and party supporters. Stalin further alleged that Markandayan was denied basic human rights during his arrest.

He also questioned the inclusion of unrelated penal provisions in defamation cases, claiming the government had recently been pulled up by the court over the issue.

Joining Stalin in condemning the arrest, DMK deputy general secretary Kanimozhi said in a post on X that the TVK-led government was misusing the police force against DMK functionaries.

She demanded the immediate release of Markandayan and asserted that the DMK would give a fitting political response to the ruling party for what she described as the misuse of police power.