Police deny DMK youth wing permission to protest over TN minister’s viral video

The TVK government's anti-drug campaign has come under the spotlight after a viral video purportedly showing Human Resource Management Minister D Sarath Kumar crushing a pill during a match in Chennai triggered a political controversy. The Opposition has demanded action against the minister, while he maintains he was crushing medicine for his daughter.

DMK not allowed to protest

Police on Monday (June 29) denied permission to DMK student wing members to stage an agitation near Rajarathinam Stadium in Chennai, demanding the resignation of HRM Minister D Sarath Kumar over the viral video. The denial sparked a heated argument between protesters and police, with over 20 demonstrators detained for violating prohibitory orders. They were expected to be released by evening.

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DMK members asserted they were protesting to safeguard the youth from drug influence and questioned why police should prevent an orderly demonstration.

The video that went viral

An old video of Sarath Kumar, purportedly showing him crushing a pill while watching an IPL match alongside his wife and daughter, had resurfaced on social media, snowballing into a major political controversy and prompting Opposition parties to demand stringent action against the minister.

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Sarath Kumar, who was inducted into CM Vijay's cabinet last month, denied that the substance in the video was a drug. He clarified that he had crushed a tablet to administer it in powdered form to his daughter, who had fallen ill during the IPL match. He described it as a medicine meant for his daughter and dismissed the social media narrative as a wrongful claim, adding that the video was two years old.

Opposition mounts attack

DMDK general secretary Premalatha Vijayakanth condemned the minister over the viral video, calling the footage highly condemnable and stressing that public representatives must conduct themselves appropriately. She noted that while Sarath Kumar was not a minister when the incident reportedly occurred, his current position meant the public would hold him to a higher standard of conduct and responsibility.

As the controversy over the white powder-like substance intensified, the TVK distanced itself from the incident, leaving the minister to navigate the fallout largely on his own.

(With agency inputs)