Days after the DMK appealed to the public to not believe inaccurate information being shared on social media on party President M Karunanidhi's health, it has now been forced to file a police complaint over fake social media posts being circulated in the name of Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi. The DMK has filed a police complaint about three abusive and fake posts.
The posts that have been doing the rounds are clearly an attempt to stoke controversy and defame the DMK leader, according to the complaint.
The first post carries Kanimozhi's name with a blue verification tick. The fake message states, “No spiritual leader needs to come visit my ailing father. I threw the prasadham that Arjun Sampath brought into the trash. No DMK cadre should take part in any superstitious activities like tonsuring their head.”
The complaint has been filed by RJ Selvanayakam, advocate & DMK executive committee member.
Speaking to TNM, the lawyer says, "There are two more posts which are also highly derogatory. None of them have been posted by the DMK leader. One of the posts claims that she said woman can enter Tirupathi while they are menstruating and that she had done so and had not died. The other one is a post about Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami. It is so insulting, that I can't even repeat the words."
In his complaint, the advocate points out that Kanimozhi is already under stress over her father's health and subsequent hospitalisation.
"As a result, she has not been using her Twitter. But a fake account has been created and messages posted from it," the complaint states.
"The DMK believes in an atheist ideology. But Arignar Anna and Dr Kalaignar have made sure we respect the beliefs of people from all religions. Kanimozhi Karunanidhi has projected this throughout her political journey. She has been carrying out several steps to ensure social unity...These messages are being purposely spread to defame Kanimozhi Karunanidhi. So, we request you to please identify and take action against those who are spreading these posts on the internet. "
No arrests have been made so far. The police are also yet to register an FIR.
DMK President M Karunanidhi was admitted to Kauvery Hospital in Chennai in the wee hours of Saturday after his blood pressure dropped. A stream of visitors including Vice President Venkaiah Naidu, Governor Banwarilal Purohit, Union Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami as well as self-styled gurus such Jaggi Vasudev among others.