A woman student was arrested by the police in Tuticorin for allegedly shouting anti-BJP slogans in front of the party’s state unit chief Tamilisai Soundararajan on board a domestic flight on Monday.

Lois Sofia, 28, an Indian research scholar in Canada, was whisked away by the police after the plane landed in Tuticorin. She has been sent to judicial custody for 15 days by a local court.

The police registered cases against Sofia for creating public nuisance and attempt to cause alarm after she shouted “fascist BJP government down, down”.

Her father has also filed a police complaint against the Tamil Nadu BJP chief and a few others for “criminal intimidation”. However, the police have not yet registered any case against the state BJP chief.

Sofia, who was on her way home from Canada, was accompanied by her parents who joined her at the Chennai airport for the IndiGo flight to Tuticorin.

Soon after the BJP leader and the student arrived at the airport’s arrival lounge in Tuticorin from Chennai, a quarrel ensued, which was caught on a camera.

Tamilisai is heard telling the student at the lounge that a flight was no place to raise slogans.

“It (inside of a flight) is not a public forum….how can you expect me to keep mum when she shouts ‘down with BJP’s fascist government’ looking at me? Is it freedom of expression,” she asked.

Later speaking to reporters, Tamilisai said, “she used worse slogans against the BJP government.”

The TN BJP chief said when she asked the woman (on arrival at the lounge) if it was appropriate to raise slogans inside a flight, the student started shouting that she had freedom of expression.

The BJP leader said she has lodged a complaint with police, adding they should inquire if some outfit was behind the student. “The words the student used is not expected of an ordinary passenger,” she said.

DMK chief M K Stalin, meanwhile, in a tweet said he too would say that “Down with BJP’s fascist regime”, and asked how many people would the government be able to arrest. He said the student must be released forthwith.

(With agency inputs)