Date:10/11/2003 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2003/11/10/stories/2003111006630100.htm

Southern States - Tamil Nadu

`The Hindu's detailed report to Centre soon'

By Our Tamil Nadu Bureau

CHENNAI Nov. 9. The Hindu will be sending to the Union Home Ministry a comprehensive report on the incidents, which occurred in Chennai and Bangalore, after the Tamil Nadu Assembly sentenced five of its members to 15 days simple imprisonment for ``breach of privilege'', the Editor-in-Chief, N. Ram, said today.

He announced this in response to a statement by the Union Minister of State for Home, I.D. Swami, that the Centre would seek a report from the Tamil Nadu Government, if the aggrieved party approached the Centre.

To questions from reporters here, Mr. Ram said he saw Mr. Swami's statement: ``We will be sending our report, a factual report on the happenings.''

Recalling the incidents in Bangalore when a team of plainclothes police personnel from Tamil Nadu intercepted a car in which he and the newspaper's Joint Managing Director, N. Murali, were travelling, Mr. Ram said the Tamil Nadu police were under tremendous pressure. ``They want to arrest at least one of the five members of The Hindu for a day or even an hour before the Supreme Court hears the petition on Monday. They are paranoid," he said addressing newspersons at a fast organised by journalist organisations here today, to protest the Assembly action.

Mr. Ram said soon after the incident, the Bangalore police brought five persons to him for identification. But he could not clearly recognise the personnel. The police were continuing the investigation.

He said that Tamil Nadu's Chief Secretary and the Director-General of Police were responsible for the events, which took place in Karnataka. Even ``my friend, the Chennai Police Commissioner, K. Vijay Kumar,'' needed to respond. ``If you are forced to be a bystander, when wrong things are happening, as any self-respecting professional, you should speak up or resign,'' he said.

Replying to a question, Mr. Ram said the petition was delayed on Friday because of a well-meaning intervention by Kuldip Nayyar and a few other journalists. The petition covered only three of the five members of The Hindu, who were sentenced to imprisonment. ``We could not accept such a petition. How can we leave out two of the members,'' he asked. He said The Hindu was not going to seek imposition of Article 356 in Tamil Nadu, even though there was a clear case for it, because ``it is not in our editorial demand''. The Hindu, he said, also did not have any plans to approach the Governor. ``He has his Constitutional limitations. We do not want to put him in a quandary or an embarrassing petition,'' he said.