Chennai: Actor-turned-politician and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay has been booked under five sections for breaching the Model Code of Conduct at Peravallur Police Station in Perambur, Chennai.

The action follows a complaint lodged by Monitoring Officer Kumar. According to the complaint, Vijay, who is the party’s candidate from Perambur and Tiruchirappalli East, allegedly violated election rules by using 30 loudspeakers, blocking an ambulance, gathering over 5,000 people, and causing public inconvenience.

Acting on the complaint, the Peravallur police have registered a case under five sections, including causing a public nuisance, obstructing a public pathway, and knowingly participating in an unlawful assembly.

The case names not only Vijay but also approximately 5,000 TVK party workers involved in the event.

Officials stated that the complainant also provided video recordings of the campaign as evidence when filing the complaint.

Campaign cut short amid security concerns

On Monday, during the ongoing campaign, Vijay cancelled part of his scheduled outreach in Chennai, citing serious lapses in security arrangements for both the public and his convoy. The announcement came shortly after he filed his nomination to contest from the Perambur constituency at approximately 12:15 pm and began his campaign around 1:05 pm, nearly an hour before the scheduled 2 pm start.

Traffic delays and crowd management issues

The campaign faced significant disruption as it took nearly two hours for Vijay to cover approximately 5 km from Perambur to Kolathur. Despite the delays, a large crowd had gathered in Kolathur to see the TVK chief.

The party alleged that inadequate police deployment led to severe traffic congestion and that poor crowd management left the convoy stranded for an extended period. TVK officials also claimed that the obstacles were deliberately created by authorities under the instructions of the ruling DMK.

Villivakkam event cancelled

Citing security concerns and the recent Karur stampede incident, TVK decided to call off the final leg of Vijay’s campaign in Villivakkam. The leadership pointed out that public safety and the well-being of the convoy were the primary reasons behind the cancellation.

Vijay is contesting elections from two seats - Preambur and Trichy East- against DMK's incumbent MLAs RD Sekar and Inigo S Irudayaraj, respectively. The Preambur constituency used to be a CPIM bastion till 2016. RD Sekar has held the seat since winning the bypolls in 2019.

Tamil Nadu will go to the polls in a single phase on April 23, covering a total of 234 constituencies in the State. Counting of votes is scheduled for May 4

With agency inputs