HC orders record of evidence in DMK's defamation case against EPS for linking party to Sadiq

CHENNAI: Taking up a suit filed by the ruling DMK against the Leader of Opposition (LOP) Edappadi K Palaniswami for linking the party to alleged drug kingpin Jaffer Sadiq, the Madras High Court sent the case to an additional master court for collecting records.

Justice G Jayachandran ordered the first additional master court to record the evidence in the suit from February 3, 2025 and also directed to decide whether the suit filed against EPS is maintainable.

The master court will decide whether the statements made by Palaniswami, that DMK had links with Jaffer Sadiq, were made in good faith in the interest of the public or to defame the party.

The court also directed to decide whether DMK is entitled to a mandatory injunction directing Palaniswami to delete all the posts from his social media handle. The master court will also look into the DMK's demand for a permanent injunction restraining the LoP from making any reference to DMK in relation to Jaffer Sadiq.

DMK had sought Rs 1 crore as damages from Palaniswami for linking the party with Sadiq.

DMK organising secretary RS Bharathi moved the suit against Palaniswami.

He claimed that Palaniswami defamed the party with baseless allegations to tarnish its public image.

The AIADMK general secretary denied all the allegations levelled by DMK and stated that the defamation suit deserves to be dismissed with exemplary costs.

The statements made by him on the X platform are true and have been made to create awareness about the drug menace, he said.

Palaniswami claimed that the inefficiency of the government in controlling drugs is evident as the High Court has contemplated a monitoring team to control the prevalence of drugs in the State. The legitimate criticism of inaction of the government can never be termed as defamation, he said.

Jaffer Sadiq, who held the deputy organiser post in the DMK NRI wing, was arrested for his key role in the alleged trafficking of pseudoephedrine, a narcotic drug, to the international drug market, including Australia and New Zealand, by the NCB.

Following the arrest, Palaniswami published several posts on his X handle alleging that law and order had completely broken down in the State, TN had become a drug capital, and its future generations were being destroyed, he alleged.