Udhayanidhi Stalin, who was arrested on Tuesday in the double-meaning insulting remark case, was released on station bail following questioning at Sengipatti near here, police sources said.
Udhayanidhi was accorded a warm welcome by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) workers outside the police station.
After he was arrested from his Chennai residence at about 11 a.m., Udhayanidhi was brought to Sengipatti police station, about 27 km from here, and he was questioned in the presence of senior police officials, sources added.
Following the completion of questioning about the alleged objectionable remark during the protest at Thanjavur on the Cauvery issue, he was released on station bail as per the state government's submission in the Madras High Court.
The questioning lasted for abour an hour and he was set free approximately nine hours following his arrest.
Treated like terrorist, alleges Udhayanidhi Stalin; rejects 'double-meaning' charge
"With 3,000 police personnel, they took us by road for 400 km from Chennai to Thanjavur like a terrorist. They did not treat us properly," former Deputy Chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin said here on Tuesday, after being released by the police.
Speaking to reporters, Udhayanidhi dismissed the allegation as "false" and said he had spoken in "single meaning" to demand the release of Cauvery water for Tamil Nadu.
"They cut, copied, and pasted my speech to claim I spoke inappropriately. Some have accused me of using double meaning. I spoke with only a single meaning: the farmers need water. I have absolutely no intention of disrespecting women. I view every mother and sister in Tamil Nadu as my own family," he clarified, expressing disappointment that even some allied political leaders had condemned him without verifying the full context of his speech.
He characterised his arrest as a desperate "diversionary tactic" orchestrated by a government unable to address the genuine grievances of the state's farmers. He alleged that the state apparatus was being misused to intimidate the opposition ahead of the upcoming legislative assembly session.
DMK protests Stalin's arrest
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) workers resorted to flash strikes across the state and road-roko demonstrations were also held strongly condemning the arrest.
The Dravidian party president MK Stalin chaired a meeting at the party headquarters to decide on the next course of action as the Assembly session is set to begin on August 5.
Udhayanidhi, the leader of opposition, who was picked up from his residence in Chennai’s Neelangarai by the Thanjavur police, told reporters who gathered there that the "court will decide".
"Did I mention anyone’s name except the CM’s? (at the protest held in Thanjavur) Then why do you think this is happening? Let the court decide," he told reporters before being escorted away by police.
Promoting enmity, provocation with an intent to cause riot, and criminal intimidation were among the nine sections invoked against Udhayanidhi.
Provisions under the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act have also been invoked, sources added.
Police officials held talks with DMK top leader Udhayanidhi Stalin's family and senior party leader Ma Subramanian before arresting the leader of the opposition on Tuesday.
Even as a huge number of party workers gathered in front of Udhayanidhi's residence and raised slogans to condemn the police for acting against their leader, senior police officials held talks.
Meanwhile, the TVK escalated its protest against Udhayanidhi’s alleged offensive remark by filing complaints with both the local police and the National Commission for Women (NCW) on Tuesday.
A police complaint was lodged at the Thanjavur East Police Station by S Bairavi, the TVK's Central District Women's Wing Organiser for Thanjavur.
The complaint alleged that when the crowd chanted "Trisha, Trisha" during the Leader of the Opposition's speech on the Cauvery issue on August 3, he responded with an obscene, double-meaning remark.
The complainant accused him and DMK IT wing office-bearers of intentionally degrading women, causing mental agony to the actor and women in general, and deliberately circulating a 2:39-minute video of the incident on the social media platform X to cause public unrest.
Simultaneously, TVK's national spokesperson, Pazha Selvakumar, lodged a formal complaint with the NCW in New Delhi.
The ruling party has urged the Commission to issue a notice seeking an explanation and demand an unconditional public apology from Udhayanidhi.
Meanwhile, reacting strongly to Udhayanidhi's arrest, DMK cadres staged protests across the state and political leaders including DMDK chief Premalatha Vijayakant and AIADMK Deputy General Secretary K P Munusamy criticised the government's action.
(With inputs from PTI)
