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Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) president Nainar Nagendran has sparked a political controversy after making a personal remark involving Chief Minister and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief C Joseph Vijay’s mother.
Speaking at the launch of Oru Naadu 2.0 in Chennai on Saturday, August 15, Nagendran said, “In the legislative assembly, some are searching for a father. But only by asking the mother at home can one know who the father is.” He added, “Who will reveal if he is being searched for in the Assembly? This is the situation of the present government.”
Nagendran’s remarks were in response to an earlier comment by Vijay in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly. Vijay had, on June 23, narrated a story about an elderly man looking for a child’s father and asking, “Where’s your father? I can’t find him.” The remark was understood as a veiled reference to former Chief Minister MK Stalin, who had lost his Assembly seat in the 2026 election.
Nagendran appeared to turn Vijay’s “father” reference back on him. He said, “If he wants to know who the father is, he should go ask his mother.”
The BJP leader’s remarks drew sharp criticism from Vijay’s party. TVK Minister Rajmohan condemned the statement and questioned whether Nagendran had maintained the dignity expected of a political leader.
“It is a derogatory comment. He didn't speak as a leader; he spoke as if he were some street-corner speaker. It is not acceptable. We strongly condemn this. One should speak with respect and meaningfully. He should uphold the dignity of the position he holds,” Rajmohan said.
Former state BJP president K Annamalai also criticised Nagendran’s remarks. Annamalai called the statement “highly condemnable” and said political disagreements should remain focused on policies, ideology and governance rather than the families of political opponents.
“Those in politics must be responsible for their words and actions. Differences of opinion may exist. Policies can be critiqued. The functioning of the government can be questioned. However, speaking in a manner that insults someone’s family members, especially their mother, is utterly unacceptable in any way,” Annamalai said.
Annamalai further criticised the tone of political discourse in Tamil Nadu. “Such low-quality remarks represent a politics that became obsolete thirty or forty years ago. The young people of today's Tamil Nadu and our growing children must not be taught this kind of third-rate politics,” he said.
Nagendran later issued a clarification, saying his remarks had been “twisted and misrepresented” for political gain. He said he had not targeted anyone with any ulterior motive. “I did not target anyone with any ulterior motive. I hold immense concern for the mother, for the motherland, and for the mother tongue,” Nagendran wrote.
