FIR in libel case against Minister Ponmudi quashed by High Court

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Friday quashed an FIR filed against Higher Education Minister K Ponmudi registered by Tiruvarur police in 2011 on charges of making defamatory remarks against the then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. Justice AD Jagadish Chandira passed the direction on disposing of a petition filed by the Minister in 2015. The case was booked on a complaint lodged by an AIADMK functionary Dhakshinamoorthy for making allegations against Jayalalithaa in a public meeting by Ponmudi. The complainant also stated that the speech of Ponmudi was against the sovereignty of the nation. When the matter was taken up for hearing, the judge quashed it on the ground that the prosecution failed to substantiate the charges.