YouTuber Maridhas arrested for 'defamatory' post on Karur stampede

Chennai: Well-known right‑wing YouTuber Maridhas was arrested by the cybercrime police on Saturday for allegedly posting defamatory content related to the Karur stampede.

The arrest comes after the Madras High Court on October 3 ordered the formation of a Special Investigation Team (SIT), headed by IPS officer Asra Garg, Inspector General of Police, North Zone, to probe the September 27 incident.

The Karur stampede occurred during a political rally of the TVK addressed by actor‑politician Vijay. The tragedy claimed 41 lives and left more than 60 injured.

Maridhas was taken into custody from his residence and questioned about a post he made on 'X' related to the incident. He was later released with a direction to appear again for further questioning, a senior police official said.

In a subsequent post, Maridhas defended his statements, asserting that he had not made any false claims about the stampede.

He further alleged that the DMK government’s action against Vijay was motivated by what he described as the “injustice” done to the actor‑politician.