CHENNAI: Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin landed in a controversy on Monday after allegedly making a suggestive innuendo while addressing a farmers’ protest over the Cauvery water dispute in Thanjavur.
The rally took a controversial turn when someone in the crowd chanted the name of a Tamil actress while Udhayanidhi was criticising Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay. Pausing his speech, Udhayanidhi, with a smirk on his face, responded with an offensive double entendre, a remark that has since sparked severe political backlash on social media.
Several TVK supporters condemned the remark as unbecoming of a leader of the opposition, while many other users also criticised it for diverting attention from the Cauvery issue.
The BJP was quick to attack Udhayanidhi over the remarks. BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy went as far as to ask for the arrest of Udhayanidhi and described his speech as “disgusting, obscene, vulgar and shameful”.
“It is shameful that former Chief Minister MK Stalin is silently watching those who claim to represent the ‘Dravidian Model’ make such indecent remarks in public,” he said.
Senior BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan said the comments were “crude” and carried an objectionable double meaning, adding that they deserved condemnation across party lines and reflected poorly on political discourse. She added Udhayanidhi showed no concern about farmers not getting water or Tamil Nadu not securing its rightful share.
BJP leader Vinoj P Selvam said despite Udhayanidhi being a former actor, he had spoken so offensively about a fellow artiste and urged the Nadigar Sangam to condemn the remarks.