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Court order not violated: Karunanidhi

J. Venkatesan

I ordered its implementation: Chief Minister
No contempt in my speech: Baalu

New Delhi: Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi has asserted in the Supreme Court that he had not violated the court order banning the bandh in the State on October 1, 2007 on the Sethusamudram issue and that he had ordered its implementation.

Mr. Karunanidhi stated this in his affidavit filed in the Supreme Court by State counsel R. Nedumaran in response to the contempt notice issued on the AIADMK’s petition alleging that the order had been violated.

On August 4, the then counsel had informed the court that the Chief Minister was adopting the affidavit of Chief Secretary L.K. Tripathy and the court had granted four weeks time for filing the reply by other respondents — Transport Minister; Transport Secretary and Union Minister T.R. Baalu (for his alleged speech criticising judiciary).

In his fresh affidavit, Mr. Karunanidhi said, “I was advised that as the Chief Secretary and the Director-General of Police would file detailed counter affidavits, I should adopt their counter affidavits. However, out of respect for this court, I have now decided to submit a separate counter affidavit [while adopting the facts stated in the affidavits of Chief Secretary and the DGP].”

He said that on receipt of the Supreme Court order, he gave instructions to government officials to carry it out. When the Democratic Progressive Alliance decided to hold a day-long fast the next day to draw attention to the importance of the Sethusamudram project, “I made it clear at that time that the fast was not against the Supreme Court order and the fast undertaken by political parties should not in any way affect the general public or hinder their routine life.”

He accused the AIADMK, the main opposition party in Tamil Nadu, of filing the petition to “malign me and the present government with false and exaggerated statements to make out a case of contempt of this court. The facts narrated will establish that I have not only not violated the order passed by this court, but I have ordered its implementation.” He said “I regret the delay in submitting this counter affidavit. The delay is neither wilful nor wanton nor due to any disrespect to the orders of this court.”

In his affidavit Mr. Baalu said “there is no contempt in the speech made by me nor was it violative of the order passed by this court on September 30, 2007. Whatever I have said on that occasion was a legitimate exercise of the freedom of speech.” While describing newspaper reports on his speech as inaccurate, he said, “There was absolutely no likelihood of any harm or injury to the administration of justice and it was only a fair criticism and expression of the factual situation.”

Both Mr. Tripathy and the then DGP, Rajendran, filed additional affidavits expressing regret for the delay in filing response.

Transport Minister K.N. Nehru and Transport Secretary Debendranath Sarangi in their response asserted that there was no bandh and normal transport services were operated on October 1, 2007.

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