The government on Friday filed a defamation case against Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) president M. Karunanidhi and the party organ ‘Murasoli’, in connection with the publication of a news item criticising Chief Minister Jayalalithaa’s stay at the Kodanad Estate in The Nilgiris.
The complaint was filed in the Principal Sessions Court by City Public Prosecutor M.L. Jegan on behalf of Ms. Jayalalithaa.
It stated, “The reading of question and answer given by Mr. Karunanidhi in ‘Kalaignar Pathilgal’ (Kalaignar’s answers) is libellous.”
The complaint also said the allegation made in the publication that the Chief Minister had taken a break from office was totally unjustifiable. Such a statement was defamatory and derogatory per se.
The complainant also prayed the court to punish Mr. Karunanidhi and S. Selvam, printer, publisher and editor of the daily, for the defamation.
The State government, this week, had already filed defamation cases against The Hindu and ‘The Times of India’ for carrying news items on the statements of Desiya Dravida Murpokku Kazhagam founder Vijayakant and DMK treasurer M.K. Stalin on the Chief Minister’s stay at the Kodanad estate.