Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Monday filed a defamation case against Subramanian Swamy, BJP’s Strategic Affairs Committee chairman, for certain remarks against her which were published in Dinamalar, a popular Tamil daily. The petition, filed by a public prosecutor on behalf of the CM in a city court states that some of the statements made by Dr Swamy in an interview given to the daily were defamatory.
Dr Swamy had told the newspaper that he appealed to Sri lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa for the release of fishermen from Tamil Nadu held in Sri lanka because representatives of fishermen had pleaded with him to get them released. “Since there was no requests from the owners of the boats seized by the Sri lankan Navy, I requested only for the release of the fishermen. The boats belonged to powerful leaders like DMK’s TR Baalu and Jayalalithaa’s friend Sasikala,” Swamy had told in the interview.
The senior BJP leader has been quoted by the newspaper as telling that Jayalalithaa has not done anything for the fishermen, Mullaperiyar Dam or the Ram Sethu issues other than writing letters to the Prime Minister and getting it published in news papers.
He pointed out that it was he who filed the case demanding an increase in the water level in Mullaperiyar Dam from 132 ft to 142 ft . “The Supreme Court had ruled in 2006 that the water level in the dam should be increased to 142 ft. Similarly, it was me who approached the court against the demolition of Ram Setu for constructing the sethusamudram Shipping Channel and won the case. But Jayalalithaa is appropriating all credit,” Swamy had said.
Jayalalithaa, in one of her letters to Prime Minister Narendra Modi had taken objections to some of the comments made by Dr Swamy about the arrest of Tamil Nadu fishermen by the Sri lankan Navy.
“I welcome the opportunity to cross examine her and prove there was no defamation. Then Ill file a malicious prosecution case and sue her for damages. She has not learnt from all the defamation cases she lost to me in the 1990s,” said Swamy about the case filed against him.