Insensitive: BJP slams TVK Minister for 'smiling' over Coimbatore girl's murder

The BJP on Sunday targeted Tamil Nadu Industries Minister S Keerthana over her reaction to questions on the sexual assault and murder of a 10-year-old girl in Coimbatore, accusing her of displaying "extreme insensitivity" during an interaction with reporters.

The controversy erupted after Keerthana declined to answer questions related to the case while speaking to journalists following an official meeting. When asked about the incident, the minister said she would respond only to "administrative questions", prompting criticism from the BJP, which alleged that she appeared to be smiling during the exchange.

BJP leader Vinoj P Selvam said the episode reflected a 'questionable' law and order situation in the state and accused the minister of trivialising a horrific crime.

"We have a woman minister who was all smiles when asked about this tragic murder of a 10-year-old child. She said she would only take questions on administrative matters and laughed it off," Selvam alleged. He further criticised the minister for later posting on social media that she naturally smiles, calling the response insensitive towards the people of Tamil Nadu.

Responding to the criticism, Minister Keerthana said her expression was being "deliberately twisted for political motives" and clarified that the smile came after the conclusion of the media interaction, not in response to any specific question.

"When I naturally smiled at the moment the Q&A session concluded after meeting journalists following the industry-related introductory meeting, it was not a reaction to any particular question or incident," she said in a post on X.

Calling the crime 'heinous', the minister said the incident had caused "immense pain" and stressed that the government had acted swiftly. She noted that Chief Minister Joseph Vijay immediately ordered action after the case surfaced, leading to the formation of five special teams and the review of more than 250 CCTV footages. According to her statement, the accused were arrested within 24 hours.

Keerthana also said the Tamil Nadu government would pursue strict legal action against the arrested accused, Karthi and Mohanraj, under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. "Justice for a child and the safety of women and children remain the top priority of this government," she said.

She further criticised what she described as "baseless criticisms, personal attacks and unnecessary trolling," adding that while opposition criticism was part of democracy, "distorting facts and turning someone's personal moments into political weapons is not a healthy approach for society".

The political row came amid outrage over the murder of a 10-year-old girl in Coimbatore. Police said the child, who had been playing outside her house under the Sulur Police Station limits, went missing on May 21 around 5 pm. A complaint was lodged later that evening, following which a case was registered.

Officials formed five special teams, scanned CCTV footage and deployed technical surveillance during the search operation. Police later identified the prime accused as 33-year-old K Karthi, a native of Nagapattinam district and an acquaintance of the victim's family, who allegedly lured the child away.

He was subsequently arrested from an apartment complex hideout. Another accused was arrested for alleged criminal conspiracy.

Chief Minister Vijay described the incident as 'horrific' and said such "inhuman and unforgivable criminal acts" would not be tolerated. He assured strict punishment under the law for those involved.

Several opposition leaders, including Udhayanidhi Stalin, Edappadi K Palaniswami, TTV Dhinakaran and Anbumani Ramadoss, also condemned the crime and demanded stringent action against the accused.