Supreme Court Ends Defamation Case Against BJP Leader L Murugan Brought by Tamil Newspaper Murasoli.
The Supreme Court today ended defamation proceedings against Union Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting L. Murugan. This followed Murugan’s statement that he did not mean to damage the reputation of the Tamil newspaper Murasoli. The Court was reviewing a Special Leave Petition from Murugan, challenging the Madras High Court’s decision to not dismiss a private defamation complaint from the Murasoli Trust. This complaint arose after Murugan made certain statements while serving as the Tamil Nadu State President of the Bharatiya Janata Party. A two-Judge Bench, including Justice B.R. Gavai and K.V. Vishwanathan, stated, “The Petitioner claims he never intended to defame the Respondent Trust or harm its reputation. The Trustees have graciously decided not to pursue the case since the Petitioner clarified his intentions. We appreciate this graciousness from the Respondent. Therefore, the previous Order and the criminal proceedings are canceled.”
After the Bench finished dictating the Order, Justice Gavai jokingly mentioned that Murasoli could start a ‘breaking news’ ticker for their TV channel. Senior Advocate Siddharth Luthra, representing the Murasoli trust, informed the Bench that the statements Murasoli claims are defamatory include remarks about the DMK opposing beneficial plans from the Modi government. He also referenced a complaint regarding the land where the DMK’s Murasoli newspaper is located, recalling that when he was Vice Chairperson of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes, the DMK objected to his inquiry into the parent title document. Luthra questioned, “Stalin, where is that parent title document? Why won’t you show it? If you don’t, the Scheduled Castes will respond at the right time.”
Luthra noted that Murugan received the complaint while he was Vice Chairperson and acted on it despite a High Court stay order. During the hearing, Luthra requested an apology from Murugan for what the Murasoli Trust considers defamatory statements, but Senior Advocate K Parameshwar responded, “There’s no need for an apology. Apologies come only with defamation.” Justice Gavai remarked, “When you enter politics, be prepared for all kinds of unwarranted compliments,” to which Luthra quickly replied, “But we are a newspaper, not a political entity.” Justice Gavai then pointed out, “You are owned by a politician.” Justice Vishwanathan suggested to Luthra, “If he makes a statement here, it will be reported. Take the hint; it could be a good way out for you.”
Cause Title: Dr. L. Murugan v. Murasoli Trust [SLP(Crl) 12091-12092/2023]
