By The Hindu Bureau
Copyright thehindu
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) general secretary (election campaign management) Aadhav Arjuna has approached the Madras High Court with a plea to quash a First Information Report (FIR) registered against him for his inflammatory tweet insinuating a revolt against Tamil Nadu government by the youngsters and the Gen Z as it had happened in Sri Lanka and Nepal.
Claiming he was a strong patriot with deep love for his country, the petitioner alleged, the cyber crime wing of the Greater Chennai City Police had registered the FIR on the basis of a motivated, frivolous and vexatious complaint targeting the petitioner for the sole reason that he was a member of a political party that speaks against atrocities committed against the common people.
Mr. Arjuna said, he had brought glory to the country through his achievements in the field of sports and thereafter, through his advocacy and philanthropy. Contending his tweet was an expression of his anger and anguish over the police brutality meted out to TVK cadres after the Karur stampede tragedy, he claimed, it was neither provocatory nor amounted to inciting rebellion against sovereignty and integrity of India.
“The X post is clearly a response to police violence and mala fide arrests and accordingly calls for democratically overthrowing the government in power and showing the might of the people against brutality by State agencies. The social media comments of a political actor calling for regime change in the present moment cannot be seen in isolation and must be understood in the proper context of the upcoming Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu that will occur in 2026,” his petition read.
The petitioner said he had posted the tweet at 11:28 pm on September 29, 2025 and then edited it within a few minutes i to remove references to Nepal and Sri Lanka. Finally, the entire tweet was deleted at 12:02 am on September 30, 2025. Thus, the tweet was available on the X platform only for a very brief period in the late hours of the night and was never intended to incite violence, he contended.
“Mere criticism of police brutality in the country or the State of Tamil Nadu does not constitute any offence under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita,” the petitioner said and prayed the court to quash the FIR registered against him.