Tamil Nadu. The controversy surrounding Chief Minister Vijay has taken a legal turn. Law enforcement agencies have lodged separate First Information Reports (FIRs) against senior DMK figures – A. Raja, P.K. Sekar Babu and MLA Vasantham Karthikeyan – accusing them of making objectionable and defamatory statements during recent party rallies.
According to the police, the complaints were filed at multiple stations following remarks allegedly uttered on 12 September, when DMK cadres staged protests against the chief minister’s comments.
Cases Against Individual Leaders
P.K. Sekar Babu, the DMK’s Chennai East district secretary and Harbour constituency MLA, was named in a case registered at the B1 North Beach police station. Authorities allege that he disparaged Chief Minister Vijay during a protest organized by the party.
In Saidapet, a separate FIR was lodged against A. Raja after a complaint from TVK office‑bearer Karthik. The filing claims Raja made offensive remarks about Energy Resources and Law Minister R.N. Nirmal Kumar during the same demonstration. Earlier, Raja had challenged the TVK, urging them to file a case if his statements were deemed objectionable.
Raja also asserted that leaders from the Congress and BJP had acknowledged the contributions of DMK supremo M.K. Stalin and his alleged arrest under the Maintenance of Internal Security Act (MISA) during the Emergency era.
Meanwhile, Kallakurichi police recorded a case against Vasantham Karthikeyan, the DMK MLA from Rishivandiyam, for allegedly directing defamatory comments toward Chief Minister Vijay.
How the Dispute Originated
The flashpoint began when Chief Minister Vijay referenced MISA in a speech inside the Legislative Assembly. In response, the DMK organized statewide protests, accusing Vijay of politicising the Emergency period and levelling corruption charges against M.K. Stalin.
Energy and Law Minister R.N. Nirmal Kumar later backed Vijay’s statements, questioning the veracity of claims that Stalin had been detained under MISA. He highlighted the absence of any official detention order, suggesting that the DMK was attempting to cast Stalin as a martyr for electoral gain.
"If there is no documented order, how can the allegation be substantiated?" – R.N. Nirmal Kumar
