Justice A.R. Lakshmanan, former Judge of the Supreme Court, will represent Tamil Nadu in the Empowered Committee to go into all issues, including the safety aspects of the Mullaperiyar dam, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi told the Assembly on Wednesday.
The committee was appointed by a five-member bench of the Supreme Court. Justice A.S.Anand, former Chief Justice of India, is heading it.
Making a suo motu statement in the House, the Chief Minister said the Centre wrote to the State Government on April 5, urging immediate nomination of its representative for the panel, in the wake of the dismissal of recall petition against the appointment of the Empowered Committee.
On March 3, Tamil Nadu filed a recall petition against the Empowered Committee in the Supreme Court, arguing that there was no need to appoint a new committee, since the Court had already gone into all the aspects of the case.
Mr. Karunanidhi said the State Government had now decided to participate in the panel since the outcome of the case in the Supreme Court was crucial for Tamil Nadu. The State Government had also consulted the Advocate General before taking the decision.
