Condemning the AIADMK regime for forcibly arresting Ilankeeran for protesting the demolition of houses at Veeranathapuram, Stalin said, “Chief Minister Palaniswami who pretends to be a farmer everywhere has trampled human rights by atrociously arresting farmer’s union leader using police.” 

Attributing the arrest to farmers meeting and thanking him for the cooperative farm loan waiver, Stalin described the ‘inhuman’ arrest of Ilankeeran and slapping of cases (three different sections) on him as barbaric and said the pretension of the CM who announces farm loan waiver on one hand and handcuffs farmers on the other hand has been exposed. In a message posted on his official Facebook page, Stalin said that it was only the power crazy CM who would be defeated soon and not the protesting farmers. The DMK president has been consistently criticising the farmer claim of Chief Minister. Even while welcoming the cooperative loan waiver announcement, Stalin had faulted the AIADMK regime for moving Supreme Court against a Madras High Court order suggesting waiver of loan waiver. Stalin’s ally Congress had in fact called loan waiver an election gimmick and said that it was not practically feasible to waive the loan owing to the enormity of debt of the state government.