VILLUPURAM: DMK district councillor was arrested in Mugaipur block of Villupuram on Friday for allegedly assaulting a female village administrative officer (VAO) during the Lok Sabha elections on April 19. The misunderstanding that ensued between the two over the food parcel they each bought from the same restaurant led to the councillor physically assaulting the VAO, said sources.
The police said that the councillor, Rajiv Gandhi, had mistaken the VAO, Shanthi, for distributing the food parcels that he had bought, to several other officials. He allegedly kicked Shanthi in the stomach, with the latter passing out on the spot. She was later taken to the Government Medical College and Hospital in Villupuram for treatment.
However, sources said that a previous event had caused animosity between the two when Shanthi refused to sign a complaint from Gandhi against a PMK candidate for violations of the Model Code of Conduct. It was later found out that Gandhi had submitted a complaint against the PMK candidate under the victim's name, which complaint was later dismissed by the police. Shanthi's public denial of filing such a complaint led to public outcry and an investigation into the matter.
On Friday, the police arrested Gandhi and remanded him under judicial custody. BJP State President K Annamalai, on his social media handle, mentioned that "Chief Minister Stalin, who was a street-to-street apologist before coming to power, did not reprimand his party members even in the slightest after coming to power, which is responsible for DMK's continuous anarchy against government officials, especially women officers. I deem the government takes appropriate action against the accused."