A case has been registered against 23 persons, including farmer leader & environmental activist Arul Arumugam, in Tiruvannamalai for staging a protest against the alleged illegal mining of sand from the Malappambadi lake, which was reportedly carried out for road-laying and infrastructure works ahead of the DMK Youth Wing conference held on Sunday.
Sources said that 21 of those arrested were farmers. The conference was attended by Chief Minister MK Stalin and Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin.
The Uzhavar Urimai Iyakkam condemned the arrests, alleging that the cases had been foisted on the protesters to cover up what it described as an abuse of power by Highways Minister E.V. Velu in connection with the removal of soil from the lake for road works and preparation of the conference venue.
According to the FIR registered at the Polur police station, a police team led by sub-inspector S. Vinayagam noticed a group of 23 persons, led by Arul Arumugam, raising slogans against the State government and protesting against the eight-lane highway project in Tiruvannamalai at around 8 pm on Saturday.
Police subsequently took the group into custody and registered a case under Sections 189(2), 269(b), 191(2) and 353(1)(b) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Sources said the farmers’ movement had been protesting for more than a month against the alleged illegal removal of soil from the Malappambadi lake and had announced a road blockade on Sunday to press their demands.
An association member said a negotiation meeting was convened under the leadership of the district revenue officer in an attempt to dissuade the protesters, during which the organisation demanded that cases be registered against those involved in the alleged soil theft. The member said that when there was no response to their demands and they were warned not to proceed with the protest, the organisation decided to go ahead with the agitation as scheduled on Sunday.
On the morning of 14 December 2025, police arrested key functionaries of the organisation, including Arul Arumugam, as a preventive measure.
The arrested persons were later produced before the Polur court and remanded to judicial custody, following which they were lodged at Vellore Central Prison.
Meanwhile, Arappor Iyakkam also condemned the arrests and demanded that the cases registered against the protesters be withdrawn.
It is noteworthy that in November 2023 Arul was detained under the Goondas Act for his role in protests against land acquisition for the SIPCOT project in Melma, Tiruvannamalai district. Following widespread criticism, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin revoked the Goondas Act detention against six of the seven detained farmers on 17 November 2023. However, the decision was not withdrawn in Arul Arumugam’s case, making him the sole protester to remain booked under the preventive detention law.
Source: The New Indian Express
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