The Tamil Nadu Police detained Leader of the Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin on Tuesday, shortly after a case was registered against him over a controversial remark widely interpreted as a reference to actor Trisha. The comment was made during a speech in which Stalin was attacking Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Vijay over the Cauvery water dispute.
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Universally condemned across Tamil Nadu’s political spectrum as a sexual innuendo targeting Vijay’s friendship with Trisha, the remark prompted swift police action. A team of officers gathered outside Stalin’s Chennai residence after the case was registered, while the opposition leader moved the Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail, with a hearing scheduled for the afternoon.
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The controversy erupted during a gathering on the Cauvery issue, where Udhayanidhi was targeting Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay over the government’s failure to secure water for the state. When a member of the audience shouted “Trisha, Trisha”, Udhayanidhi paused and responded with a double entendre, drawing fierce backlash from political opponents who labelled the comments vulgar and derogatory towards women.
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As public outrage grew, the ruling TVK launched a sharp attack against the DMK leader. TVK leader Aadhav Arjuna referred to Udhayanidhi as “Obscene Nidhi”, accusing him of lowering the bar for political discourse and dismantling the legacy of scholar C. N. Annadurai. In a post on Instagram, Arjuna stated that Udhayanidhi’s “perverted thinking about women” would be rejected by every mother, sister, and parent in Tamil Nadu, predicting that women voters would completely wipe him out from state politics.
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Adding to the criticism, TVK spokesperson Felix Gerald questioned on X whether Udhayanidhi would be willing to play the audio clip of his speech to his own son and daughter, calling the remark “disgusting”.
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The BJP also issued a strong condemnation. Tamil Nadu BJP chief spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy described the language as “disgusting, obscene, vulgar and shameful” and called for Udhayanidhi’s immediate arrest. Former state BJP president K Annamalai mocked the speech, while state vice-president Khushbu Sundar demanded an unconditional public apology to actor Trisha.
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In response, the DMK defended its leader, with former minister T Mano Thangaraj dismissing the fallout as a politically motivated attempt to divert attention from the Cauvery dispute and the plight of delta farmers. Describing the outrage as “manufactured hatred”, Thangaraj urged critics to engage on policy issues rather than relying on selective outrage designed to stop Udhayanidhi from raising tough questions in the Assembly.
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Also read: Udhayanidhi leads DMK protest over farm issues
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