Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin admitted that Gnanasekaran, the accused in the Anna University sexual assault case, was associated with Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), but said that he was merely a sympathiser.
Speaking in the Assembly on Wednesday, January 8, the CM said, “I assure you that the accused arrested in the Anna University case is not a DMK member. But we won’t deny that he is a DMK sympathiser.”
On the continued protests staged by the opposition, Stalin said, “If the accused was not arrested or if the accused was being shielded, the government can be blamed. But even after arresting the accused within a few hours and collating all the evidence, blaming the government seems politically motivated and not as protests out of concern.” He said that the sexual assault was "great cruelty” and that the state was committed to ensuring justice to the survivor.
Stalin also blamed the National Informatics Centre (NIC) for leaking the FIR in the case. NIC had previously said that technical glitches led to the leak of the FIR.
After the opposition raised questions on the alleged involvement of another person referred to by the accused as ‘sir’ in the complaint, the CM said that answers should be demanded from the Special Investigation Team (SIT) constituted by the court to probe the case.
Earlier on January 6, the Assembly witnessed uproarious scenes as AIADMK members were evicted from the House after raising the issue of the Anna University sexual assault case. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) also staged a walk-out from the Assembly demanding answers from the DMK on the case.
On December 23, a student of Anna University was sexually assaulted, filmed, and allegedly blackmailed by Gnanasekaran. The survivor filed a police complaint on December 24, and an FIR was filed. Gnanasekaran was booked on charges of rape and sexual harassment.