TVK Minister Faces Storm Over Viral 'Drug' Video From IPL, Says It Was Child's Medicine

Last Updated:June 27, 2026, 11:47 IST

Tamil Nadu's Human Resources Minister D Sarath Kumar is facing allegations of drug use after an old video surfaced showing him using a white powder during a match.

A video of Tamil Nadu Human Resources Minister D Sarath Kumar has resurfaced on X, triggering allegations of substance abuse on social media. The clip appears to show the minister using a card to straighten a line of white powder on a mobile phone.

The video is believed to have been recorded during an Indian Premier League (IPL) match involving the Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Kumar is seen wearing a yellow-and-white shirt, while another person seated beside him in a CSK jersey waves at the camera.

The viral clip has prompted some social media users to call for the minister’s resignation.

Responding to the controversy, Kumar released a two-minute video denying the allegations. He said the substance seen in the clip was not an intoxicant but medicine that he was crushing for his child.

“This morning I attended an anti-drug campaign event. Since then, a false narrative using an old video of mine is being spread, claiming that I was doing drugs," the minister said, as quoted in an India Today report. In the video, the Minister is speaking in Tamil.

The caption of the video just simply says, “Explanation on current false accusations.."

Kumar said that the incident, which people on the internet are claiming to be a case of using intoxicating drugs, happened in 2024. He had gone to watch an IPL match at Chennai’s MA Chidambaram Stadium along with his family and friends.

“My daughter needed to take medicine, but she could not swallow the tablet whole. My wife asked me to crush it so it could be mixed with water and given to her. That is exactly what I was doing," he explained.

The Tamil Nadu minister, responsible for matters related to education in the state, requested people to not spread false claims. He said that such allegations are causing considerable distress to him and his family.

He further said that when the stadium had such high security arrangements and he was surrounded by his friends and family, he couldn’t have been taking drugs. “It is unfair to make such allegations," he said.

The controversy is also interesting because it happened just after Tamil Nadu’s Chief Minister Vijay, along with Kumar, participated in a marathon campaign organised to encourage people to stay away from drugs.

Sarath Kumar was elected a member of the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu from Tambaram, just outside Chennai. He was made a minister in Vijay’s government last month.

Saravanan Annadurai, a spokesperson for the Dravidra Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), cornered the newly elected TVK government in the state over this matter.

Calling for a thorough probe in the matter, Annadurai said, “the minister’s action is eerily similar to how people snort drugs."

News india TVK Minister Faces Storm Over Viral 'Drug' Video From IPL, Says It Was Child's Medicine

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