Tamil Nadu Police arrested Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin from his home in Chennai on Tuesday morning over remarks he made against actor Trisha Krishnan during a rally in Thanjavur on Monday.
The DMK leader, who was seen smiling as he was escorted by police, said he saw the arrest as "a joke" and that he would "fight it legally."
He was taken to Thanjavur, where he is expected to be questioned in connection with an FIR registered over his address at the protest meeting.
Stalin has been booked under Sections 61, 79, 192, 196, 296(b), 351(2) and 352 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, Section 4 of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act, and Section 67 of the IT Act.
Speaking to reporters after his detention, Stalin denied making any derogatory remarks, alleging that a "fake narrative" had been created against him using edited and misleading content.
"They have propagated fake news by using 'Cut, Copy, Paste' to claim I said something I never said. I am not the kind of person to be intimidated by all this. I will face it legally," he said, calling the police action a "comedy."
The controversy stems from his remarks while addressing a protest gathering over the Cauvery water dispute in Thanjavur.
The incident unfolded when sections of the crowd interrupted his speech with chants of "Trisha, Trisha."
He paused briefly before allegedly remarking, "Whether the water reaches anywhere else or not, it should reach there," which he later clarified was a reference to Cauvery water reaching Tamil Nadu.
ALSO READ: Udhayanidhi Stalin Controversy Explained As TVK Slams DMK Leader's Remark On Actor Trisha
The Tamil Vazhvurimai Katchi (TVK) filed a police complaint against Stalin and wrote to the National Commission for Women, alleging he had resorted to "offensive, double-meaning remarks and vulgar innuendos targeting a prominent female public figure."
The complaint added that "such language, delivered from a high-profile political platform, normalises the objectification and verbal harassment of women in public space."
TVK leader Americai Narayanan, speaking to NDTV, rejected accusations of political vendetta, saying Stalin "has not been arrested for speaking against Chief Minister Vijay or the TVK, but for insulting a woman."
The DMK has strongly criticised the police action. Party leader TKS Elangovan said "nothing was said against anyone," adding that Stalin had only "listed out Vijay's failures" and "didn't even name Trisha."
ALSO READ: MK Stalin Slams Vijay's 'Unilateral Diplomacy' On Cauvery, Seeks All-Party Meeting
Tamil Nadu BJP had earlier demanded Stalin's arrest, with state spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy calling the remarks "disgusting, obscene, vulgar, and shameful," and questioning why former Chief Minister M K Stalin "watches silently" while DMK leaders speak this way in public.
This is not the first time Trisha has been the subject of objectionable remarks linked to speculation over her rumoured relationship with Vijay.
Earlier this year, BJP leader Nainar Nagendran had suggested Vijay should "come out of Trisha's house" before entering politics, prompting a response from her legal team.
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