Narcotics officials search television celebrity's Chennai home after complaint

Anti-narcotics officers searched the Chennai-area home of Tamil television actor Balaji Murugadoss following information relating to drugs. The search in Thiruverkadu, near Avadi, has prompted a public dispute between the actor and police over how it was conducted.

Murugadoss, who was runner-up in the fourth season of a popular Tamil reality show and later moved into films, posted on social media questioning the basis for the search and demanding to know who had complained against him.

In the video he said the search, carried out around the Diwali period, had caused distress to his family, and he questioned the basis on which it was ordered.

He also appealed directly to the Tamil Nadu chief minister, asking him to make the complainant's identity public and challenging the police action as unjustified.

Officials have not announced any seizure or arrest in connection with the search.

The incident has drawn wide attention in Tamil entertainment circles, with the actor's video being shared extensively.

UPDATE: The Avadi Police Commissionerate says four officers carried out the search on the basis of drug-related information, treated those in the house respectfully and followed legal procedures throughout. Murugadoss disputes that account, saying he was not shown a warrant despite repeated questions, was harassed, and has since been asked to leave the property by his landlord. He says he will take the officers involved to court. The two accounts remain in dispute; the police statement does not establish wrongdoing by the actor.