Who Is Dr Manikandan, Ex-Minister Accused Of Rape And Forced Abortion By Tamil Actor?

Who is Manikandan? Former State Information Technology Minister, M Manikandan, has been accused by a well-known actor in Tamil Nadu for allegedly cheating, blackmailing and sexually exploiting her for the past five years. The actor, Chandini, who is best known for the film Nadodigal, has accused the former All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) leader of impregnating her on the pretext of marriage and later forcing an abortion.

The 36-year-old woman has lodged a complaint with the Chennai police. She further added that she is being threatened, claiming her private photos might get leaked and her life is in danger as well.

Who is Dr M Manikandan, accused of cheating, blackmailing, and threatening the actor?

Manikandan received his bachelor's degree in Medicine from the Annamalai University and then obtained Masters in Surgery (MS) from Sri Ramachandra Medical College, Tamil Nadu. He was at first working as AIADMK’s medical wing deputy secretary. The physician turned politician then stepped up the ladder to become an MLA, minister and the party’s district secretary in quick succession. In 2016, Manikandan was inducted into the Jayalalithaa-led government of Tamil Nadu as a state minister with Independent Charge. At 39, he became the second-youngest minister to be sworn into the Tamil Nadu Cabinet. He was also one of the eighteen MLAs from Tamil Nadu who aligned with TTV Dinakaran against the then chief minister of Tamil Nadu Edapaddi K Palaniswami. He lost his ministerial berth after the incident.

The actor has alleged that the former IT minister and she started a relationship in 2017. She also claimed that he "cheated" her by later refusing to marry her. Chandini has shared chats, documents and photographs as a proof of her relationship with the politician and has lodged a complaint with the Chennai police commissioner. Read more about Chandini here. Chandini was introduced to Manikandan when she worked for the Malaysian Tourism Development Corporation. During her frequent visits to India, the two developed a relationship and the minister even divorced his wife to be with the actor, she wrote in her complaint to the police. Read more about their relationship here.

Feature Image Credit: TheNewstuff