A local BJP functionary, Praveenraj, in Tamil Nadu’s Namakkal district was arrested for allegedly posting inflammatory content on social media platform X under the handle ‘Sanghi Prince’. The arrest drew sharp criticism from the state BJP leadership, who allege political targeting.

According to a statement issued by the Namakkal District Police, Praveenraj, a resident of Muthukalipatti in Rasipuram taluk, had tagged a Tamil news channel’s report in a post that contained hate speech against followers of a particular religion. The post, made on April 25, was said to have the potential to disturb religious harmony and public order.

A case was registered at Nallipalayam Police Station, and Praveenraj was arrested on July 1 after being on the run for over two months. He was subsequently remanded to judicial custody. The district police also appealed to the public to refrain from sharing posts on social media that could incite caste or religious tensions.

BJP Tamil Nadu President Nainar Nagendran reacted strongly to the arrest. “I condemn the arrest of our party functionary Praveenraj for criticising the terrorists involved in the Pahalgam attack by the DMK-controlled police force,” Nagendran wrote in a post on X, adding that he had spoken to Praveenraj’s father and assured legal and political support.

Meanwhile, Praveenraj had posted a series of tweets and updates on X prior to his arrest, claiming that the police had harassed his family and that the arrest was politically motivated.

He alleged that police visited his home when he was not present and threatened his parents and feared he would be another victim of custodial death.

In one of his posts, he said, “I am the next Ajith Kumar… not for this murder, but for speaking out against terrorists.” He accused the police of acting to silence criticism of Pakistan and Islamic terrorism, and suggested that their actions were driven by fear of judicial scrutiny.

– Ends