Indu Makkal Katchi (IMK) leader Arjun Sampath’s son, Omkar Balaji, who also heads the party’s youth wing, has been arrested for allegedly “threatening” Dravidian journalist ‘Nakkheeran’ Gopal, who runs the tabloid Nakkheeran, during a protest.
The protest, organized by IMK near the Racecourse station in Coimbatore on 27 October 2024, was held to denounce critics of Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation and the Isha Yoga Centre at the foothills of Velliangiri.
IMK president Arjun Sampath and Omkar Balaji were both present at the event. According to reports, a DMK member and auto-rickshaw dealer, A. Abdul Jaleel, who apparently “overheard” Omkar’s speech while on his way for personal errands, filed a police complaint the following day.
The complaint alleges that Omkar Balaji had threatened to drag Mr. Gopal through the streets, handcuff him, and imprison him once the DMK loses power in Tamil Nadu. He is also accused of threatening to cut off the journalist’s tongue. IMK cadres note that Omkar had just used a commonly used colloquial remark in the heat of the moment.
Omkar was standing up for Isha against Nakkeran Gopal’s vicious lies.
In the heat of the moment, he used a common Tamil slang—“your tongue will be pulled out & cut off”—which was meant symbolically.
But @tnpoliceoffl took it literally, leading to his arrest. pic.twitter.com/tMC1kiaThZ
— Indu Makkal Katchi (off) (@Indumakalktchi) November 10, 2024
Citing the seriousness of these accusations, the Government Advocate requested the court to reject Omkar Balaji’s anticipatory bail plea. The Madras High Court had directed Omkar Balaji to appear before the court on November 13 and issue a formal apology for his remarks.
However, Omkar was arrested by the Tamil Nadu police during the wee hours of Saturday (09 November 2024) which the IMK says is contempt of court.
In order to condemn this, the IMK had called for a demonstration to be held on 10 November 2024 demanding the release of Mr. Omkar Balaji. The party executives and volunteers started gathering in front of Coimbatore C 2 Racecourse Police Station from 8 AM. Following this, the police officials negotiated with the cadres and released Omkar Balaji.
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