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Tamil Nadu withdraws cases against farmers, teachers who protested under previous government
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced the withdrawal of all criminal cases registered against farmers and teachers who participated in peaceful protests between May 2021 and April 2026, citing humanitarian grounds and democratic principles. The move covers protests against SIPCOT industrial projects and the scrapped Parandur airport proposal.
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Tamil Nadu withdraws cases against farmers, teachers who protested under previous government
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced on Wednesday that his government will withdraw all criminal cases registered against farmers and teachers who participated in peaceful protests during the previous DMK regime. The decision, announced in the state Assembly under Rule 110, covers cases filed between May 2021 and April 2026, according to multiple reports.
Vijay made the announcement as a suo motu statement, saying the cases were filed against people who had exercised their democratic right to protest over their livelihoods, rights and legitimate demands. He accused the previous MK Stalin-led government of treating protestors 'inhumanly', a characterization reported by several outlets.
Cases linked to SIPCOT projects and Parandur airport
The withdrawal applies to cases registered against farmers who opposed the proposed State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu (SIPCOT) industrial estate in Tiruvannamalai district, officials said. Vijay specifically noted that some protesters had been booked under the Goondas Act, a stringent provision that drew criticism from political parties, civil society organisations and human rights activists when invoked during the previous government's tenure.
The decision also covers cases registered during the prolonged agitation against the proposed greenfield airport at Parandur in Kancheepuram district. Residents of Parandur and surrounding villages had organised sustained protests against the project, arguing that it would lead to the acquisition of fertile agricultural land, damage waterbodies and destroy traditional sources of income. The airport proposal has since been scrapped by the present government, as reported by Free Press Journal.
Vijay described farmers as the state's "backbone" and said the decision to withdraw the cases was taken on humanitarian grounds and in recognition of their legitimate concerns. "All those cases also will be withdrawn. This move will further strengthen democratic rights and reinforce trust between common people and government," he said, according to quotes carried by Moneycontrol and Times Now.
Teachers' casesdropped
The Chief Minister also announced the withdrawal of cases against teachers who had participated in protests through democratic means, saying several such cases were still pending, continuing to cause hardship to those involved. The decision extends to teachers who took part in peaceful demonstrations during the five-year period, the government said.
Vijay said his government would stand with farmers and teachers and support their "just demands," describing the withdrawal as an effort to protect democratic rights and rebuild trust between the government and ordinary citizens. "This government will stand by farmers and teachers and their just demands," he said, as reported by Lokmat Times.
Implementation and context
The government said necessary instructions would be issued to the departments and authorities concerned to begin the process of withdrawal. Officials will examine the cases and complete the required legal formalities before applications are submitted to the appropriate courts, according to Lokmat Times. The move is expected to provide relief to farmers who have been making repeated appearances before courts and police authorities in connection with the protests, that report added.
The announcement comes as protests by various sections of workers and employees continue to remain an issue in Tamil Nadu. In the Assembly, Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin raised the ongoing protest by more than 2,000 sanitary workers of the Greater Chennai Corporation at Ripon Buildings. The workers have been protesting for around 15 days, seeking permanent employment, higher wages, ESI and PF benefits and regularisation of contract workers, as reported by Times Now. Minister Rajmohan said the government was working towards an amicable resolution and that some files related to their demands were ready.
Parties including the CPI and PMK have separately urged the government to consider withdrawing cases linked to NEET protests and NLC-related agitations, according to Free Press Journal.
How each outlet told it
A framing line is our reading of that outlet's own text — an interpretation, not a quotation and not a fact we assert. Check it against what the outlet published.
Framing: Emphasizes Chief Minister Vijay's initiative to withdraw cases against farmers and teachers, highlighting the DMK rule under which they were filed.
Facts Included:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced on Wednesday, September 2, 2026, that his government will withdraw cases registered against farmers and teachers participating in protests during the previous DMK government.
Vijay made a suo motu statement in the Assembly under Rule igh110.
Vijay said farmers faced cases in connection with protests against SIPCOT industrial projects, including in Tiruvannamalai district.
Vijay mentioned the Goondas Act was invoked against protesters in some instances.
Vijay referred to opposition from farmers to the proposed Parandur airport project, with residents raising concerns over the loss of agricultural land, water bodies and livelihoods.
The airport proposal has since been scrapped by the present government.
Vijay announced the withdrawal of cases against teachers who had participated in protests through democratic means.
Vijay criticised the previous MK Stalin-led DMK government, alleging that protesters had been treated in an “inhumane” manner despite raising their demands through democratic protests.
Parties including the CPI and PMK have separately urged the government to consider withdrawing cases linked to NEET protests and NLC-related agitations.
Framing: The headline emphasizes the Chief Minister's announcement of withdrawing cases against farmers and teachers from the DMK era.
Facts Included:
The Tamil Nadu government announced withdrawal of all criminal cases registered against farmers and teachers who participated in peaceful protests between May 2021 and April 2026
Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay announced the decision in the Legislative Assembly under Rule 110
Cases against farmers who opposed the proposed State Industries Promotion Corporation of Tamil Nadu industrial estate in Tiruvannamalai district will be withdrawn
Cases registered during the prolonged agitation against the proposed greenfield airport at Parandur in Kancheepuram district will also be withdrawn
Some farmers were detained under the Goondas Act, drawing criticism from political parties, civil society organisations and human rights activists
The government said the cases would be withdrawn on humanitarian and democratic grounds
The decision also extends to teachers who took part in peaceful demonstrations during the five years
CM Vijay said the administration recognised the right of farmers, teachers and other sections of society to express their concerns without fear of punitive action
The move is likely to benefit hundreds of protesters across the state
Framing: Headline emphasizes the CM's decision to drop cases and his characterization of the previous regime's treatment of protestors as 'inhuman'
Facts Included:
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay announced that the current TVK government has withdrawn all cases filed against farmers and teachers who protested during the DMK regime
Vijay accused the previous MK Stalin-led government of treating the protestors 'inhumanly'
Many of the cases were filed between 2021 and 2026
Vijay stated that farmers, whom he called the state's "backbone," faced charges for protesting projects like SIPCOT industrial developments and the planned Parandur airport
He cited cases filed against farmers protesting the SIPCOT industrial estate in Tiruvannamalai district, including instances where farmers were booked under the Goondas Act
Vijay also referred to protests by farmers in Parandur against the proposed airport, where they had raised concerns over the loss of agricultural land, water bodies and livelihoods
Vijay said 'All those cases also will be withdrawn'
Vijay said 'This move will further strengthen democratic rights and reinforce trust between common people and government'
Framing: The headline emphasizes the Chief Minister's action as a relief for protesters, highlighting the withdrawal of cases against teachers and farmers.
Facts Included:
Tamil Nadu CM C Joseph Vijay announced the withdrawal of cases registered against teachers and farmers for peaceful protests between May 2021 and April 2026.
The announcement was made in the state Assembly under Rule 110.
Vijay referred to cases against farmers protesting the proposed SIPCOT industrial estate in Tiruvannamalai district.
Some protesters had been booked under the Goondas Act.
Vijay also announced the withdrawal of cases against farmers who protested the proposed airport at Parandur.
The announcement comes as protests by various sections of workers and employees continue to remain an issue in Tamil Nadu.
Leader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin raised the ongoing protest by more than 2,000 sanitary workers of the Greater Chennai Corporation at Ripon Buildings.
The workers have been protesting for around 15 days, seeking permanent employment, higher wages, ESI and PF benefits and regularisation of contract workers.
Minister Rajmohan said the government was working towards an amicable resolution and that some files related to their demands were ready.
Vijay described the decision as one taken on humanitarian grounds and in keeping with democratic principles.
AI-extracted; can misattribute a claim — see Methodology.
Each row is one claim, attributed to the outlet whose wording states it most clearly. Confidence rates how directly the source text states the claim — explicit and unhedged rates high; hedged, pieced-together, or internally inconsistent statements rate lower. It does not measure whether the claim is true. Status is Contested when two claims on this page negate each other; otherwise it counts the distinct outlets we found asserting that specific claim — so a single-source claim can still show high confidence, and a multi-source claim can show medium. Every one of those outlets is named beside the status, so you can check the count against the list. For claims extracted before we began storing that list, the row says so: it names the outlet the claim is quoted from and states that we have not recorded which outlets backed it. Outlets wrote at different times, so a figure that evolves — a casualty count, for example — can legitimately differ between rows; check the "as of" time next to each claim's source.
Claim
Confidence
Status
ClaimThe Tamil Nadu government announced the withdrawal of all criminal cases registered against farmers and teachers who participated in peaceful protests between May 2021 and April 2026.
ClaimCM Vijay said the administration recognised the right of farmers, teachers and other sections of society to express their concerns without fear of punitive action.
ClaimLeader of Opposition Udhayanidhi Stalin raised the ongoing protest by more than 2,000 sanitary workers of the Greater Chennai Corporation at Ripon Buildings.
ClaimThe sanitary workers have been protesting for around 15 days, seeking permanent employment, higher wages, ESI and PF benefits and regularisation of contract workers.
ClaimVijay stated that farmers, whom he called the state's "backbone," faced charges for protesting projects like SIPCOT industrial developments and the planned Parandur airport.
ClaimVijay cited cases filed against farmers protesting the SIPCOT industrial estate in Tiruvannamalai district, including instances where farmers were booked under the Goondas Act.
ClaimVijay also referred to protests by farmers in Parandur against the proposed airport, where they had raised concerns over the loss of agricultural land, water bodies and livelihoods.
ClaimVijay said 'All those cases also will be withdrawn. This move will further strengthen democratic rights and reinforce trust between common people and government.'
ClaimParties including the CPI and PMK have separately urged the government to consider withdrawing cases linked to NEET protests and NLC-related agitations.