Tamil Nadu higher education minister faces row over viral video; POCSO complaint filed

A controversy has broken out after a video, which allegedly shows Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister P Viswanathan interacting with girl athletes at an event in Madurai, went viral on social media. According to a report by The Times of India, a POCSO complaint has been filed over the incident.

The viral video has not been independently verified.

According to TOI, the incident happened at Melur Government School in Madurai district during a marathon organised as part of the birthday celebrations of Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The athletes were reportedly resting after the event when the minister interacted with them after the prize distribution ceremony.

The viral video allegedly shows Viswanathan talking to the athletes and touching the stretched legs of some participants while interacting with them. The footage has drawn criticism from many social media users and political commentators.

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POCSO complaint filed

According to the TOI report, a complaint under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act was filed after the controversy over the video.

Reacting to the incident, DMK advocate Saranya Natarajan called the minister’s behaviour inappropriate and demanded his resignation.

Political reactions, minister's response

According to a report by Times Now, the incident has sparked reactions from leaders of different political parties.

DMK leader Syed Hafeez criticised the minister’s actions and said, “Everyone should understand and respect other people’s personal space. The Higher Education Minister’s behaviour of touching students who took part in the marathon organised for the Chief Minister’s birthday is highly condemnable. This is not acceptable and must stop.”

BJP national spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla also criticised the state government and demanded action against the minister. In an Instagram post, he urged Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay to remove Viswanathan from the cabinet.

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Tamil Nadu BJP vice-president Narayanan Thirupathy called the alleged act “irresponsible” and asked the minister to apologise.

Responding to the controversy, Viswanathan defended his actions and said it was part of a happy birthday celebration, where students and youngsters had invited him to join them. According to Times Now, the minister said there was “nothing wrong” in celebrating and interacting with young people at the event.

Video sparks debate online

The video has led to wide discussion on social media, with users sharing different opinions on the minister’s actions. However, Viswanathan had not issued any official statement on the controversy at the time of reporting.

So far, the allegations being shared on social media have not been verified, and the viral video has not been independently confirmed to be genuine.