TIRUCHY: The Samayapuram police on Tuesday arrested Tamil film director Mohan G (39) from his residence in Chennai for his alleged controversial remarks on panchamirtham, a prasadam served at the Dhandayuthapani Swamy Temple in Palani. Mohan, however, was granted bail by a judicial magistrate court in Tiruchy, which declined the police’s request for his remand.
The director’s arrest was based on a recent complaint by a manager at the Mariamman Temple in Samayapuram. The temple manager alleged Mohan, in an interview to a Youtube channel, said panchamirtham offerred at the Palani temple has adverse health effects on people who consume it. “Even before the Tirupati ‘laddu’ row was settled, he (Mohan) spread fake news among the people of TN so as to destroy religious harmony,” Kaviyarasu, the manager, stated in his petition.
After the arrest, Samayapuram police brought Mohan to Tiruchy and produced before the judicial magistrate court III. Judge KR Balaji, however, released him on conditional bail as all the sections registered against him carry a punishment of jail term below three years, sources said.
Condemning the director’s arrest, PMK founder S Ramadoss in a post on X said, “It is clear to those who have seen the interview that Mohan has done nothing wrong. It is unjust to have arrested him without fully understanding what he said in public interest.”