AIADMK MP caught on camera threatening policemen during routine security check

The MP claims it is illegal for the police to stop a parliamentarian's vehicle, especially since it had the AIADMK flag and Jayalalithaa's picture on it.

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"I am not like everybody, I will finish you!"

"Why are you patrolling here?"

"Call the DIG, call the SP."

"Be careful."

These are some of the threats and barbs thrown around by Nilgiris MP C Gopalakrishnan to a patrolling officer in Coonoor, as seen in a video which has since gone viral on social media. In the video, the AIADMK MP can be seen standing at the door of his car wagging his finger threateningly at a policeman. The uniformed officer stands in shock and responds to the parliamentarian with silence.

The MP’s apparent aggression was reportedly in response to his car being stopped for a routine security check at 4.30am on Friday morning, near the Gandhi statue in Coonoor. “Why are you patrolling here? Call the DIG, call the SP. You should do your work correctly. I will finish you. I am not like everybody, I will finish you and keep going...Do your patrolling carefully,” he is seen saying in the video.

When TNM contacted the MP to understand what triggered off his aggressive behaviour, he claimed that stopping an MP's car is illegal. "How can they stop an MP's vehicle? Especially after they see the AIADMK flag and Amma's picture?" he asked. "Yes, I admit I said whatever is seen in the video. But only because it is legally wrong for a police officer to do this. I was coming there early in the morning," he claims.

"This is a political conspiracy against me. They can see that I am growing in my political career. That is why they are doing this," he says, and adds, "The policemen there was probably drunk.” Police department sources however claim that they have been on a high alert following a string of crimes in the area and that police presence has brought down crimes.

No police complaint has reportedly been filed over the MP’s public aggression. When Shanmugapriya, Superintendent of Police, Ooty, was contacted regarding the outburst, she said that she was not aware of the incident. "But there is nothing illegal about stopping anyone's car. The police have the right to do so. I will look into the matter," she said.