Edappadi K Palaniswami, the general secretary of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), has raised allegations against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin and his son, state Minister Udayanidhi Stalin, regarding their purported connections with Jaffar Sadiq, a Tamil film producer and former member of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), who was apprehended by the Narcotics Control Board (NCB) in a case involving drug trafficking valued at Rs 2,000.
In a statement shared on X, the former Chief Minister unveiled images depicting Sadiq alongside Stalin, Udayanidhi Stalin, state Education Minister Anbil Mahesh, and DMK MP Kanimozhi. Palaniswami divulged that Sadiq, previously affiliated with a DMK district team, had been involved in smuggling 3,500 kilograms of raw materials for drug production over three years.
Highlighting suspicions of financial support provided by Sadiq to the DMK and its associated entities, Palaniswami underscored the leniency exhibited toward Sadiq despite his involvement in drug smuggling, even when law enforcement agencies were under the DMK's purview.
The DMK recently expelled the Tamil film producer from its ranks following his implication in the drug trafficking network by the NCB. Palaniswami emphasized the need for the Chief Minister and his son to acknowledge moral culpability and tender their resignations promptly.
Furthermore, Palaniswami disclosed his meeting with the state Governor to apprise him of the prevalent drug abuse issues within Tamil Nadu. Following Sadiq's arrest, revelations emerged that he purportedly provided Rs 7 lakh to Udhayanidhi Stalin for flood relief efforts last year, with an additional Rs 2 lakh allegedly designated for the DMK.
The NCB has posited that Sadiq orchestrated a drug syndicate responsible for dispatching 45 consignments totaling approximately 3,500 kilograms of pseudoephedrine to various countries over the past three years. The agency is currently delving into whether the funds extended to Udayanidhi Stalin were sourced from the proceeds of the drug trafficking enterprise.
Sadiq had been evading authorities following NCB raids conducted in Delhi the previous month. Before his apprehension, he traversed through multiple cities, including Chennai, Thiruvananthapuram, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, and Jaipur. Additionally, in February, three individuals connected to the case were arrested in Delhi as part of a joint operation between the NCB and the Delhi Police's Special Cell.
