‘I want Nayanthara’: AIADMK leader’s remark at women’s safety rally sparks outrage

AIADMK leader and Rajya Sabha MP C Ve Shanmugam crossed a line that even his party struggled to defend this week. Speaking at a protest rally in Villupuram, he said: "If I say I want Nayanthara, will he (Stalin) fulfil my dream? If someone asks him to arrange their marriage with Nayanthara, will he fulfil that dream?"

The comments, made at a rally focused on women's safety, were widely criticised as misogynistic and demeaning.

What Shanmugam was referring to

The target of Shanmugam's jibe was Chief Minister MK Stalin's public outreach initiative, titled Tell Us Your Dream, under which party volunteers visit homes to collect people's aspirations and feedback on governance. The campaign draws on former President APJ Abdul Kalam's famous call to dream big.

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The rally was part of statewide AIADMK-BJP protests against what the Opposition describes as a collapse of law and order under the DMK government.

Outrage from DMK, social media

The DMK was swift and pointed in its response. DMK party spokesperson Dr Syed Hafeezullah told NDTV: "Criticise our policies, but don't demean women. By insulting Nayanthara, he has insulted all women. This is unacceptable in a civilised society."

Critics noted the bitter irony of making such remarks at a protest centred on women's safety, accusing Shanmugam of making derogatory statements at precisely the wrong moment.

AIADMK remains tight-lipped

The AIADMK has issued no official condemnation of Shanmugam's remarks. According to NDTV, a party spokesperson, pleading anonymity, distanced the organisation from the comments, saying it was "not the spokesperson's role to defend such statements."

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This is not the first time Shanmugam has faced criticism over remarks on women. Last year, at an AIADMK booth committee training session, he suggested that MK Stalin might "even give a wife for free to each person" alongside election freebies like mixers and grinders, a remark that drew widespread condemnation from DMK ministers and women's rights advocates.