The Vikravandi police have filed a case against Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) leader Seeman for delivering a provocative speech hailing the assassination of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi at an election meeting in the Assembly constituency on October 11.
While addressing a meeting meant to canvas for the party’s candidate, K. Kandasamy, in Vikravandi, where a byelection is due on October 21, Mr. Seeman hailed the assassination of the former Prime Minister, holding him responsible for the killing of Tamils in Sri Lanka.
Police sources said a case was registered against Mr. Seeman after R.P. Ramesh, district president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC), lodged a complaint with the Vikravandi police, seeking his immediate arrest.
The NTK leader was booked under Sections 153 A (promoting enmity between different groups on grounds of religion, race, place of birth, residence, language, etc., and doing acts prejudicial to maintenance of harmony) and 504 (intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of the peace) of the Indian Penal Code.
Standing by his controversial comments on the assassination of the former Prime Minister, Mr. Seeman on Monday asked why people were not disturbed when a few individuals shot at and damaged freedom fighter Mahatma Gandhi’s portrait.
He downplayed the case registered against him over his remarks, saying, “What is there [in it]? There are many such cases around, and we have been facing them.”
Judge’s advice
In October 2017, a judge had asked him to exercise restraint while expressing his thoughts.
Acquitting Mr. Seeman and film director I. Ameer Sulthan in a sedition case, D. Lingeswaran, then Additional District Sessions Judge, Ramanathapuram, had advised the NTK leader to exercise restraint while fighting to protect the interest of Tamils.
When the judge acquitted the duo in the case, which was filed against them for speaking against India’s sovereignty and in support of the banned LTTE, both of them thanked him for his ‘landmark’ judgment. The judge had observed that the pair had only expressed their anguish over the killing of Tamils in Sri Lanka, and had wanted India to find a political solution to the ethnic conflict.
