The Hindu : Front Page : Judge’s order stayed on Raja’s appeal

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Thursday, Jul 30, 2009
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Judge’s order stayed on Raja’s appeal

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Wednesday granted an interim stay of a single Judge’s order that had dismissed an application by Union Minister A. Raja and his wife seeking to restrain Tamil bi-weekly Junior Vikatan from publishing “defamatory news items and photographs” relating to them and their minor daughter.

The dismissal had come with costs of Rs. 10,000.

In a common order, the Judge had allowed an application filed by the publication seeking to vacate an earlier order of interim injunction.

A Division Bench comprising Justices K. Raviraja Pandian and P.P.S. Janarthana Raja granted the stay on a petition filed by Mr. Raja and Ms. M.A. Parameswari.

In the appeal seeking an interim injunction filed by counsel, P. Wilson, Mr. Raja and Ms. Parameswari submitted that the Judge’s order proceeded as if the applicants were in the public domain and that all the news items did not relate to their private life and were related to conduct in the public domain.

Such findings were against documentary evidence and the pleadings.

The publication had been “consistently, without any public decency and morality,” causing damage to the applicants since April 2008, bringing out news items “even without any reasonable verification.”

The Judge had brushed aside even the relief sought for the minor daughter on the basis of a non-binding undertaking, which was not even properly recorded. He had not considered that Mrs.Parameswari was not a public figure.

Non-appreciation

The Judge applying R. Rajagopal’s case by holding that public figures had to ignore vulgar criticism and abuse amounted to non-appreciation of the exact grievances of the appellants.

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