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The Chennai police on Wednesday, September 16, arrested journalist Damodaran Prakash, who works for Tamil investigative magazine Nakkheeran, for making derogatory remarks about a woman anchor who works with YouTuber Savukku Shankar. Prakash was arrested from his residence in Chintadripet, Chennai.
According to the police, Prakash appeared in a video titled ‘HIV Savukku — Kalyanam’ which was published on YouTube in January this year, and made malicious rumours against the woman anchor saying that she had contracted HIV.
The video, published on the YouTube channel King 24 X 7, featured the woman’s photograph and contained “false, disgusting statements regarding her personal life, thereby defaming womanhood,” police said.
The case was registered at the S-8 Adambakkam Police Station based on a complaint filed by the woman. Police said Prakash was arrested under various sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), the Information Technology Act (IT Act) and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act (TNPHW Act).
Police said that the person involved in moderating the programme had not yet been identified and that further investigation was underway.
The Chennai Press Club has issued a statement condemning Prakash’s arrest and questioned the eight-month gap between the complaint and the police action. The Press Club alleged that the arrest appeared to be retaliatory in the wake of his anti-government views.
In its statement, the Press Club said Prakash had played a significant role in several investigative stories published by Nakkheeran. It cited his work on the Sankararaman murder case, the disproportionate assets case against former Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, the Pollachi sexual assault case and the death of a schoolgirl in Kallakurichi, among others.
“Prakash, who has fearlessly pointed out and criticised the mistakes of those in positions of power, was arrested now for something he said on YouTube nearly eight months ago, without any prior inquiry. This raises several questions,” the Press Club said.
“It also raises concerns over whether such action was taken to intimidate journalists who point out and criticise wrongdoing,” it added.
The Press Club said it had no objection to legal action being taken against Prakash if the allegations against him were established. However, it strongly condemned his arrest without first seeking an explanation from him or conducting an inquiry, and urged the Tamil Nadu government to immediately release him.
