Chennai: A sexual harassment incident involving a student at Anna University in Tamil Nadu has ignited significant political turmoil in the state. The case, which has drawn widespread attention, involves a second-year engineering student who reported being assaulted on campus by two unidentified men.
The alleged assault occurred on December 23, 2024, while the student was conversing with a friend on university grounds. According to her complaint filed at the Kotturpuram police station, the attackers assaulted her friend before turning their attention to her. The police have since arrested one suspect and are actively pursuing leads to apprehend the others involved. Reports indicate that the assailants threatened the victim with the release of explicit images taken during the incident if she reported it.
The incident has sparked protests from both the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the AIADMK (All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam), with BJP Tamil Nadu president K. Annamalai alleging that one of the accused is affiliated with the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK). Annamalai presented photographs of the accused with DMK leaders, claiming that this connection allowed for a lack of police action against him. To further his protest, Annamalai vowed to whip himself six times outside his residence as a demonstration against what he termed government negligence regarding women’s safety.On December 27, Annamalai followed through on his promise, publicly whipping himself in Coimbatore to draw attention to the issue and express his disdain for the state’s handling of sexual assault cases. He also declared that he would not wear sandals until the DMK government was removed from power.
In response to escalating tensions surrounding this case, police detained several senior AIADMK leaders during their protests. Former Tamil Nadu Governor Tamilisai Soundararajan condemned the police’s actions, asserting that rising sexual crimes reflect government and police inaction. She insisted that citizens have a right to protest and called for stricter measures against such offences.
This situation has evolved beyond a mere law-and-order issue into a politically charged atmosphere, with the BJP leveraging it as a platform to challenge the DMK government. The DMK has dismissed these allegations as politically motivated, accusing the opposition of exploiting the situation for electoral gain.As protests continue and investigations unfold, this incident has become a focal point for discussions about women’s safety and political accountability in Tamil Nadu.
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