AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami (EPS) raised sharp questions over the viral video statement issued by Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, claiming that it stirred doubts instead of calming them, and accused the ruling party of allowing defamatory content about the Karur stampede to spread.Speaking on social media, EPS said that while protesting political neutrality, Stalin’s video is being viewed by many as a performative “photo shoot” meant more for optics than empathy.
He contended that the real slander was not coming from critics but from within the state machinery itself — posters being put up under names like “Tamil Nadu Student Union,” acts of political ambulance campaigning, and sensational footage that spread rapidly online.
EPS asked: is placing posters under a student union name slander? Are the alleged police inaction and footage of rush scenes being dismissed as “rumour”? He questioned whether certain scenes, such as political figures posing for media amid mourning, were themselves provocative.
He accused the government of avoiding answers, and instead attributing legitimate questions and criticism to defamation. He called the one-person commission led by Justice Aruna Jagadeesan a “whitewash” meant to bury truths, and called for a CBI inquiry to expose the real facts.