Observing that BJP leader H. Raja has the “proclivity to make irresponsible and damaging comments” against people from different walks of life, the Madras High Court on Tuesday reminded him of a Tirukkural couplet on the need to guard one’s tongue to avoid facing misery in life.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh refused to quash any of the 11 cases booked against Mr. Raja for having made disparaging remarks against Dravidian ideologue Thanthai Periyar, former Chief Minister Karunanidhi, DMK MP Kanimozhi, as well as officials of the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR&CE) Department and their wives.
The judge said that the quash petitioner was a former MLA, now holding an important position in a national party. He has many followers who get influenced by his words, thoughts and deeds. Yet, he invited as many as three cases for a demeaning tweet against Periyar in 2018. “E.V. Ramaswamy, who came to be known as Periyar, is revered by the people of Tamil Nadu as the father of the Dravidian movement. He rebelled against gender and caste inequalities in Tamil Nadu and started the self-respect movement. Throughout his life, he was striving for a new rational society without caste, religion and god,” the judge wrote.
