Chennai, February 11 The newly formed TVK, led by actor-politician Vijay, targeted the ruling DMK over the controversial ban on whistles at the Chepauk stadium, claiming that the Dravidian party was becoming increasingly uneasy due to the party's growing popularity.
Chepauk falls under the Chepauk-Tiruvallikeni assembly constituency in the city, represented by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin's son and deputy, Udhayanidhi.
In response to the ban at the M A Chidambaram cricket stadium, which led to the defeat of Afghanistan in the match against New Zealand, a TVK leader claimed that the police enforced the ban on carrying or blowing whistles at the stadium.
The whistle is the election symbol allotted to the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam by the election commission.
Fans who eagerly went to the stadium on February 8 to watch the T20 World Cup were asked by security and police to hand over their whistles before entering the stadium.
The TVK leader claimed that the TNCA never restricted the use of whistles, yet the police had banned it. "This only showed the extent to which the DMK was rattled by the TVK's popularity," he claimed.
Refuting the charge, a DMK senior leader said, "Vijay and his party leaders unnecessarily targeted the Chief Minister and are trying to create the impression that they were becoming popular, which is not the truth."
Initially, the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association clarified that it had not imposed the restriction, but later pointed out that the ICC guidelines prohibited whistles, vuvuzelas, and megaphones for the tournament.
On Sunday, the fans were greatly disappointed when the police frisked them.
During the 2025 IPL, Vijay's fans carried their party flag into the stadium, but it was later confiscated.
