Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Thalapathy Vijay has warned that insulting or crude remarks about women will not be tolerated under any circumstances.
He said sharp political criticism is acceptable, but no remark should disrespect women.
Speaking in the state assembly, Vijay said freedom of expression is everyone’s personal right, but everyone must be responsible about how that freedom is used. He called for political criticism that does not demean any individual, woman or otherwise.
Vijay said a trend of indecent and hateful remarks about women has emerged in Tamil Nadu politics recently. He said public remarks should be made with the mothers and sisters at home in mind.
The chief minister further said, “Ordinary people, along with the women in my family, have played an important role in getting me to where I am today.” He warned that legal action would be taken against anyone making indecent or defamatory remarks about women.
Vijay’s comments come days after a controversy over allegedly suggestive remarks made by opposition leader Udhayanidhi Stalin about actress Trisha.
Udhayanidhi is alleged to have made a remark at a protest meeting on the Kaveri River in August that was claimed to allude to Trisha. The DMK, however, claims the statement was edited and misleadingly presented, and that Udhayanidhi never mentioned Trisha’s name.
Following the incident, police took Udhayanidhi into custody, but he was released after questioning on the orders of the Madras High Court.
In the assembly, Vijay further said members of the same opposition party have previously been accused of insulting women. He noted that former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa had once been insulted in the same assembly.
Speaking to reporters after the assembly session, Udhayanidhi criticized Vijay’s remarks. He alleged that the chief minister had leveled several baseless accusations against the DMK without giving the opposition a chance to respond.
Udhayanidhi said they listened silently for nearly 11 minutes as the chief minister spoke about the police department, after which various allegations were made against them without any evidence being presented. He argued that making an allegation doesn’t make it true — any allegation must be backed by proof.