Chennai, Oct 20, 2026 13:26 IST - A DMK leader has been booked for allegedly making defamatory remarks against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay during a party gathering, according to police reports citing the Press Trust of India. The ruling TVK party strongly condemned the incident, accusing the opposition organization of lowering political discourse and turning public platforms into venues for personal attacks.
The police registered the case against Chennai Corporation ward councillor Sudha Deenadayalan, who allegedly made the remarks, alongside DMK functionary Muralidharan, who organized the October 7 event in Chennai. Authorities confirmed that no arrests have been made thus far in connection with the complaint.
Deenadayalan, who serves as the DMK's Chennai East District Women's Wing organizer, reportedly targeted Vijay after the Chief Minister criticized DMK president MK Stalin. According to police statements, she addressed the Chief Minister using singular pronouns and made derogatory comments. Social media clips allegedly showed her utilizing abusive language and referencing physical appearances while defending her own party leadership.
The Greater Chennai City Police stated that the case was initiated after TVK Harbour Area Secretary Udayakumar lodged a formal complaint demanding legal action against both Deenadayalan and Muralidharan for allegedly attempting to incite public disorder. The remarks were delivered in the presence of several high-ranking figures, including DMK deputy general secretary and MP Kanimozhi, former state minister PK Sekar Babu, and Chennai Mayor R Priya, with video footage suggesting that Sekar Babu and Priya smiled or laughed during the address.
TVK leaders voiced heavy criticism over the comments, demanding formal apologies from the senior DMK members present on stage. Kanimozhi subsequently remarked that politicians ought not to compromise their own standards based on the conduct of political rivals. Additionally, the DMK circulated a video asserting that both Kanimozhi and Sekar Babu had admonished Deenadayalan following the event and instructed her to uphold appropriate political decorum.
TVK general secretary and minister Aadhav Arjuna issued a sharp rebuke of the opposition, stating that the DMK was entrenched in vile language and that its platforms had degenerated significantly. Questioning the silence of Stalin, Arjuna asked whether the party leadership was deliberately ignoring the episode or quietly encouraging the behavior. He criticized the presence of leaders on the dais, noting that Kanimozhi appeared uncomfortable while Mayor Priya laughed.
Arjuna insisted on swift legal measures to curb such behavior and preserve healthy democratic traditions. Meanwhile, during the same event, Kanimozhi defended the historical roots and ideological foundations of the Dravidian movement, invoking figures like Periyar EV Ramasamy, CN Annadurai, and M Karunanidhi to argue that the party's identity required no external validation. She also turned criticism toward legislative debates, alleging that the ruling establishment often avoided direct answers to opposition inquiries in favor of social media spectacle.