Produce video clippings, High Court tells DMK

The first bench comprising acting Chief Justice Huluvadi G Ramesh and Justice Mahadevan on wondering how DMK was aggrieved when the issue was only between the Chief Minister and the former Chief Minister O Paneerselvan, adjourned the case to Monday. 

The bench also observed that the row seemed like an internal party affair. 

Earlier, senior counsel R. Shanmugasundaram appearing on behalf of Stalin contended that the proceeding was loaded with illegalities. 

He said besides the opposition leader Stalin being stopped a kilometre away and subjected to check before being forced to walk to the assembly, the way the floor test transpired despite a demand for secret test was not in accordance with the rules. 

However, the bench intervened and sought to know how the former Chief Minister O Paneerselvam has been roped as a respondent in the case. 

The first bench felt that the former chief minister is being unnecessarily dragged into the case when at best he could have been the petitioner if he had some grouse on the way the floor test was held. 

While Shanmugasundaram conceded to the bench’s observation and agreed to remove Paneerselvam’s name from the list of respondents and file a fresh plea, he insisted that removal of the opposition MLAs en masse was utterly illegal and moreover senior police officers dressed as assembly watch and wards were used in the removal process resulting in many MLAs including the opposition leader sustaining injuries. 

He further noted that the truth can be established only if the court intervened and directed the assembly secretary to submit the unedited version of the proceedings. 

But the bench refused to pass any such direction and instead sought him to submit the footage they had to substantiate their claims. 

Senior counsel N L Rajah, appearing on behalf of the Advocates Forum for Social Justice, which also moved a similar plea seeking to declare the trust vote as null and void, contended that all the MLAs of AIADMK, who were held captive in a resort before the trust vote and escorted to the Assembly in buses tantamounted to corrupt electoral practices. 

However, the bench during the hearing made a cryptic remark that the process of herding MLAs seems to have become the order of the day.