TN BJP takes umbrage to video showing public slaying of goat carrying Annamalai's photo

Chennai: The BJP's Tamil Nadu unit on Thursday responded strongly and demanded action after a video went viral in which some men are purportedly seen slaying a goat, around whose neck a photo of the party's state president K Annamalai is tied.

It was immediately not known where the purported incident happened or who had posted it. The veracity of the clip could not be ascertained immediately.

Responding, Annamalai said if the 'DMK' workers were angry against him, they could as well come at him.

Tamil Nadu BJP Vice-President and Party Spokesperson Narayanan Thirupathy uploaded the video on his social media platform X, condemning it.

The state BJP reposted it on its official X handle.

"Killing a goat in the middle of the road and shouting against @annamalai_k and celebrating his (LS polls) defeat clearly shows that the political parties are afraid of the growth of @BJP4India in Tamil Nadu, and exposes the lowest level of politics that the opposition political parties can stoop (to)," he said.

"Further, it can be heard on the video that small children were made to shout slogans against @annamalai_k. Instigating hate and anger in children is highly condemnable and exposes the opposition's silly, filthy politics. We expect strict action and arrest of these criminals," Thirupathy added.

Annamalai, talking to reporters in Coimbatore, said "If the DMK workers are so angry with me, I am here in Coimbatore... The innocent goat could have been spared."

In the April 19 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, the ruling DMK-led bloc won all 39 seats in the state as well as the lone neighbouring Puducherry segment. Annamalai, who led the BJP-led alliance in Tamil Nadu in a spirited fight, lost out to DMK's Ganapathy P Rajkumar in Coimbatore.