Tamil Nadu chief minister J. Jayalalithaa on Monday filed a defamation complaint before a sessions court against the The Hindu, an English daily, and DMDK leader and leader of Opposition A. Vijayakanth for the publication of a news item in the daily dated August 1, 2012.
City public prosecutor M.L. Jagan filed the defamation complaint on behalf of the chief minister before the principal sessions court seeking punishment of the publisher, printer and editor of the Hindu under section 500 and 501 of IPC and Vijayakanth under section 500 of IPC.
The complaint said that the daily in its edition dated August 1 published a news item with the headline Jayalalithaa running her government through statements, alleges Vijayakanth. The statement in the publication that nowhere in the world had a chief minister taken such a long break from office was totally fallacious, defamatory and without basis.
The chief minister was only staying in Kodanad for a certain period, but all official and constitutional duties were being continuously discharged by the chief minister irrespective of the place of stay. The chief minister was also functioning and discharging duties even on Sundays, which would indicate that the chief minister was performing the constitutional functions and running the government effectively and efficiently.
In the past, various chief ministers have stayed in different parts of the state and have discharged their official duties from there. Hence, without any verification and enquiry, publication of such defamatory and bald statements made by the accused was defamatory and derogatory, Jagan said.
The statement in the publication alleging that the chief minister was issuing statements and announcing projects worth crores of rupees that remained on paper was totally based on mere conjectures and surmises. The chief minister had announced several projects that serve the larger interests of the public and all were carried out.
Thus such wild and reckless allegations made by the accused would indicate their malicious intention. Vijayakanth being leader of Opposition was aware of the welfare schemes announced by the chief minister and the work done by the government.
He has intentionally, to malign the reputation of the chief minister, made a false statement and the entire news item was published and circulated to harm the reputation of the chief minister, Jagan said.