Overview

• A video from August 29 shows municipal junior assistant Muniyappan, who belongs to a Scheduled Caste, falling at councillor Ramya Raja’s feet inside the Tindivanam Municipality office.
• Tindivanam police say a case has been registered under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and an investigation is underway.
• In his police complaint, Muniyappan alleges the councillor and her husband used caste slurs, threatened him, and coerced him to apologise by falling at her feet.
• Ramya Raja denies coercion and has lodged a complaint alleging Muniyappan touched her inappropriately under the pretense of apologising.
• Police sources say Muniyappan submitted a written statement that he fell on his own to avoid escalation, as political leaders including BJP’s K. Annamalai, the VCK, and the AIADMK publicly criticised the episode.