CHENNAI: The death of a three-year-old girl, after she was raped allegedly by a 19-year-old migrant worker from Bihar in Gummidipoondi, Tiruvallur district, triggered widespread outrage across Tamil Nadu. Political leaders strongly condemned the incident, questioned the state’s law-and-order situation, and demanded swift justice for the victim.
Expressing shock over the nature of the crime, Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin launched a scathing attack on the ruling TVK government. Describing it as evidence of a complete collapse of public safety under the ‘sofa-model’ administration, he alleged that Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has failed to ensure basic security for women and children despite making them a key focus of his election campaign.
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami also condemned the incident and questioned the effectiveness of the state’s policing machinery. Taking a swipe at the government’s recent initiatives, he asked what the police and the newly-launched Singappen Special Task Force were doing to prevent such crimes. He accused the government of focusing on publicity rather than governance.
BJP state president Nainar Nagenthran, who visited the victim’s family, alleged that more than 48 crimes against women had been reported within the first 20 days of the TVK regime and accused the government of remaining a “mute spectator”.
The incident also sparked debate over the monitoring of migrant workers. Former BJP state president and We The Leaders founder K Annamalai urged the government to establish a mechanism requiring contractors to share complete details of migrant workers, including their native addresses, with local authorities.
CPM state secretary P Shanmugam sought enhanced night patrolling and installation of CCTV cameras in vulnerable areas, while NTK coordinator Seeman criticised successive governments for failing to regulate migrant workers despite repeated warnings.
Thoothukudi MP Kanimozhi Karunanidhi, Tiruvallur MP Sasikanth Senthil and Tamizhaga Vazhvurimai Katchi president T Velmurugan expressed grief over the incident and called for stringent preventive measures and speedy trials.
Filmmaker Pa Ranjith described the incident as deeply disturbing and called for systemic intervention to address crimes against children. Citing NCRB data showing a rise in child sexual offences, he urged the state government to constitute a special committee comprising psychologists and child rights experts to study the root causes of such crimes. He also called for more child-friendly investigation centres and speedy disposal of cases involving children.
