Taking strong offence to the depiction of Justice GR Swaminathan in a booklet on the Thiruparankundram issue, the Madras High Court stayed its release and initiated suo motu contempt against the publishers on Wednesday, January 7.
During an urgent hearing, a bench comprising Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Srivastava and Justice G Arul Murugan observed that, prima facie, the depiction of the judge in the booklet titled Thiruparankundram issue: Is Justice G R Swaminathan a judge or an RSS rowdy? was “highly derogatory and abusive, crosses all limits, and needs to be dealt with sternly by the court.”
The bench convened to hear a petition filed by Naveenprasad, seeking to stall the release of the booklet at stall numbers 172 and 173 at the Chennai book fair. Published by Keelai Kaatru Publishers, the booklet was announced to be released at the Book Fair beginning Thursday, January 8.
Justice GR Swaminathan is a sitting judge of the Madras High Court, who recently passed an order allowing RSS-associated groups to light the lamp at the “deepathoon” atop the Thiruparankundram hillock near a Muslim dargah, triggering tensions in Madurai city.
The booklet’s cover depicts a caricature of Justice Swaminathan wearing a black robe and characteristic RSS khaki knickers underneath. He is shown holding a lamp in one hand and an RSS flag in the other– portraying him as an RSS member.
The bench directed the police, the Additional Public Prosecutor, and the Additional Solicitor General to take immediate and effective steps to ensure that no book containing pictorial representations, statements, caricatures, or content tending to scandalise the court or a judge is published or circulated.
“Appropriate action shall be taken by the police authorities, including ensuring that such scandalous publications do not take place. This may include the seizure of pictorial representations and objectionable content through any means, including electronic media,” the order said.
The Madras HC has directed the state counsel to submit a compliance report in the next hearing.
Meanwhile, a complaint was filed on the same day with the Chennai police seeking action against the publishers of the booklet. The complaint, filed by S Muralidharan, urged the police to register a case against the publishers on charges of “criminal defamation, deliberate scandalisation of the judiciary, promotion of hatred, and circulation of offensive material” targeting a sitting judge.
“The visual and textual elements are deliberately intended to lower the dignity of a constitutional court, malign the judge’s impartiality, and provoke public distrust in the judiciary,” Muralidharan’s complaint read.
He further alleged that the advertisement and promotion of the booklet at the Chennai Book Fair and on social media amplified the harm. “The contents are not fair criticism or academic commentary. They are scurrilous, malicious, and designed to scandalise the court, interfere with the administration of justice, and incite hatred by attributing political and communal motives to a sitting judge,” he claimed.