Tamil Nadu ministers whose names surfaced in the idol theft case have now strongly denied such claims and sought an apology from news channels who named them. Pon Manickavel had named two ministers for their role in the case.
Chennai: Tamil Nadu ministers who were named in the idol theft case by Pon Manickavel, vehemently denied any involvement in the idol theft cases in the state. Their denial came after special officer of the Tamil NaduiIdol wing Pon Manickavel told the Madras high court that two state ministers were involved in theft cases.
Though it is unclear if Pon Manickavel named any of the ministers, a few news reports, including Kalaignar TV - a channel owned by the DMK family - flashed their names during the broadcast.
“What has been told about us is a lie, lie, lie,” stated one of the ministers on Thursday. The ministers stated that Pon Manickavel had not submitted any report with the names of the two ministers.
“In such a situation, our photos are being published to gain political mileage by accusing us,” he said. He also added that they will send legal notice to Kalaignar news channel and also file a complaint with the Press Council of India.
"Let him (Pon Manickavel) say whatever he wants in the court. How can Kalaignar News publish our photos and name us?" he asked.
“If it was said that two ministers were involved, we would have been silent. But Kalaignar news channel telecast the news with our photos. That is why we are denying now,” he said. He also demanded an apology from the TV channel.
Idol wing special officer Pon Manickavel informed the Madras high court on Wednesday that two Tamil Nadu ministers were involved in idol theft cases that are yet to be investigated.
The officer made the submission on a plea moved by former DSP of the idol wing Kadhar Batcha, who had accused Pon Manickavel of colluding with the main accused of the idol wing cases that are pending probe.
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