Palaniswami Questions Vijay's 'Silence' on International Drug Racket, Seizure by DRI

Chennai: AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami on Tuesday questioned Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay's "silence" over the alleged operation of an international drug racket along Tamil Nadu's coastline and sought to know if it was happening with the "knowledge" of the ruling TVK. Asking why the Chief Minister's total silence prevailed even after the Union Finance Ministry officially detailed the multi-crore international drug racket operating along the state's coastline, Palaniswami said, "so, can we assume that this drug issue is happening with the knowledge of the ruling party leadership and with their help? Will the news disappear only if your party members are unable to take responsibility for the crime and answer, and threaten the media?"

Citing the release from the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence on a major crackdown on organised drug trafficking, leading to the seizure of 137 kg crystal methamphetamine, a banned synthetic drug, from a coastal village in Nagapattinam district, he said this was one of the biggest narcotics seizures in Tamil Nadu's coastal region in recent years.

In the operation during October 16–17, the DRI successfully uncovered a suspected coastal drug-trafficking network attempting to smuggle the narcotic substances to Sri Lanka through mid-sea transfer. The value of the seized contraband in the illicit drug market is estimated to be in excess of Rs 100 crore.

Demanding answers over the "massive Rs 400 crore" crystal methamphetamine seizure linked to a TVK functionary, the former Chief Minister cited the official press release issued by the Ministry of Finance on October 18, 2026, which labeled the operation as "one of the biggest narcotics seizures in Tamil Nadu's coastal region in recent years," and expressed concern over the scale of the network.

"The emerging facts indicate a massive, deep-rooted drug network," the AIADMK chief stated.

"One expected Mr. Joseph Vijay, at least in his capacity as a responsible Chief Minister or as a party leader, to break his silence regarding his own party functionary's 'Walter White' behavior. Instead, he remains completely mute, mimicking his usual silent demeanor when facing the opposition in the Legislative Assembly", Palaniswami said on X.

Walter White, referred to by the former Chief Minister, is a fictional high school chemistry teacher turned meth kingpin from a crime drama series Breaking Bad, aimed at a satirical analogy to mock N Boopalan's alleged dual life as a political party functionary and as a methamphetamine mastermind.

Four people - N Boopalan the 42-year-old expelled TVK functionary and lawyer from Chinthamani, identified by officials as the alleged mastermind, J Suganathan, 27, a lodge operator from Velankanni, J Parthiban, 29, Suganathan's brother, and D Sathish, 30, have been arrested and remanded to judicial custody by the DRI in connection with the 137 kg crystal methamphetamine haul.

Drawing a comparison to past controversies, Palaniswami pointed out that while previous cases involved raw precursors like pseudoephedrine, the current case involving TVK Nagapattinam district functionary Boopalan has exposed a staggering haul of fully processed contraband.

"In the Boopalan case, central authorities have seized fully processed Meth Crystals - specifically 137 kilograms of it, valued at approximately Rs 400 crore," Palaniswami claimed.

"When an international drug mafia is operating with the explicit backing of the ruling party, for whose benefit was this 'Reels CM' running anti-drug marathons?" he asked taking a direct swipe at Chief Minister Vijay, who had recently launched an anti-drug campaign.

During the event, the CM wrote the official awareness slogan "Sports-ah Edu, Drugs-ah Vidu" (Take up sports, quit drugs) on a campaign board.

The AIADMK general secretary further claimed that TVK's Nagapattinam town secretary Paulraj has been issuing open threats to media houses reporting on the drug bust.

"Does this mean this entire drug business is operating with the full knowledge and active collusion of the ruling party's top leadership? Just because your party men threaten the media to cover up a crime, will the truth disappear?" Palaniswami asked.

He slammed the state administration's intelligence failure, pointing out that local law enforcement was completely bypassed during the operation.

"For your information, Chief Minister Vijay, it was not your state police that busted this cartel. It was intercepted and seized by the central agency, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence. You and your 'exclamation mark' government should hang your heads in shame for this," he added.

Demanding an immediate, comprehensive official explanation from the Chief Minister, Palaniswami asked if the public would ever receive accountability from an administration that rode to power promising political transformation.