Chennai, Sept 3:
The Madras High Court on Wednesday quashed two cases registered against former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami in connection with protests held in Salem during 2021 and 2022.
Justice V Lakshminarayanan passed the order while hearing petitions filed by Palaniswami seeking to quash the two cases registered by the Salem Town police. The court held that politicians have the right to stage protests.
The first case relates to a protest held in 2021 in front of the Nattanmai Building in Salem, when Palaniswami, along with present MLAs and MPs, participated in a demonstration condemning the then DMK government. The police had registered a case alleging that the protest was conducted without the required permission and in violation of the COVID-19 restrictions in force at the time.
The second case dates back to February 28, 2022, when Palaniswami led a protest at the Kottai Maidan in Salem condemning the arrest of former AIADMK minister D Jayakumar. The Salem Town police registered a case alleging that the protesters blocked the road and caused disruption to traffic.
Palaniswami subsequently approached the High Court seeking cancellation of both cases. During the hearing on September 2, the court allowed his petitions and ordered that the proceedings against him in the two cases be quashed.
The order comes amid renewed debate in Tamil Nadu over cases filed against political leaders and protesters for demonstrations. The High Court’s observation that politicians have a right to protest is significant in the context of cases arising from political agitations.The key correction from the earlier version is that both cases were specifically connected to Salem protests and COVID-era restrictions/traffic disruption, rather than being described generally as protest cases.