Tamil Nadu: 28-yr-old photographer held for morphing CM photo with Narendra Modi

A 28-year-old man has been arrested for allegedly morphing a photograph of Tamil Nadu CM Edappadi K Palaniswami and posting it online. The accused Alex Pandian is a photographer by profession and is currently in judicial custody.

According to police officers, Pandian morphed a photograph taken on December 19 during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Kanyakumari visit, in which Palaniswami is seen receiving him at the helipad. As is the norm for AIADMK leaders, Palaniswami had a photograph of former CM late J Jayalalithaa in the transparent pocket of his shirt. Pandian allegedly replaced Jayalalithaa’s photograph with that of PM Modi and released the it online.

According to a senior police officer probing the case, Pandian had a political motive as he is a sympathiser of T T V Dinakaran, leader of AIADMK’s rebel faction. “He morphed the photo and posted it in a WhatsApp group called “TTV Special Team” and on Facebook as well. We received the complaint from Kanagaraj, a lawyer from Nagercoil, and registered a case,” the officer said. Kanagaraj is the joint secretary of a lawyers’ union which supports the AIADMK’s ruling faction.

Quoting the FIR, the officer said the morphed photograph also led to confusion within the government and the ruling party. Pandian has been booked under Indian Penal Code sections 153 (wantonly giving provocation with intent to cause riot), 505 (Statements conducive for public mischief) and 500 (punishment for defamation).