The Supreme Court today issued notice to multiple state governments and complainants on the plea lodged by DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin seeking to club the criminal cases registered against him for his controversial remarks on Sanatan Dharma.
A bench comprising Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta allowed the amendment of the plea moved by Stalin under Article 32 of the Constitution. Previously, the Court had objected to the filing of the petition under Article 32 and asked Udhayanidhi Stalin to amend his plea to bring it under Section 406 (power of Supreme Court to transfer cases and appeals) of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).
The DMK leader is currently facing cases in different states over his comment that just like dengue, mosquitoes, malaria, or coronavirus need to be eradicated, they have to eradicate Sanatan Dharma. He made the aforesaid statement in September 2023 during a conference organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association in Chennai.
Last month, the Supreme Court remarked that the DMK leader cannot claim that he is in the same position as the media and news channels. Furthermore, the top court in March had observed that Stalin had abused his rights under Article 19(1)(a) (freedom of speech and expression) and 25 (freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion) of the Constitution in making such comments.
Few days after the DMK leader’s speech, 262 persons including 14 retired High Court judges wrote a letter urging the Supreme Court to take suo motu action against Udhayanidhi Stalin for his controversial comments. Later, a plea was also filed before the Supreme Court seeking the registration of a criminal case against Stalin.
Additionally, a trial court in Bengaluru ordered the registration of an FIR against Stalin for his remarks. A Jammu court also directed an enquiry after a litigant filed a criminal complaint. A plea was also filed before the Madras High Court to remove Stalin from his position as a Minister. Before the High Court, the DMK leader said that his statement was not against Hinduism or the Hindu way of life, but was merely a call for ending caste-based discriminatory practices.
Subsequently, the High Court declined to pass any direction to remove Stalin from his post, but criticised him for his remarks. It said that the comments were divisive and against Constitutional principles. The High Court stated that unverified claims about Sanatan Dharma amounts to spreading misinformation.