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The Supreme Court on Monday questioned the Tamil Nadu Sports Minister and DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin over his remarks calling for the eradication of 'Sanatana Dharma' and told him that he is "not a layman but a minister".
A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta told Stalin's lawyer that the minister is not a layman but a minister and he should know the consequences of his remarks. Stalin approached the apex court seeking clubbing of multiple FIRs registered against him in several states over his remarks. Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi appearing for Stalin sought relief from the top court to club all the FIRs, saying FIRs are registered in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Bihar, and Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra. The bench frowned upon Stalin saying he should have known the consequences before making remakes. "You abuse your rights under freedom of speech and expression and right to freedom of religion and then come to Supreme Court for protection under Article 32? Do you not know the consequences of what you said?," asked the bench. Singhvi, during the hearing, relied on the cases of Arnab Goswami, Nupur Sharma, Mohd Zubair, and Amish Devgan where the apex court had agreed to club FIRs. "If I have to move six High Courts, I will constantly be tied up in this... This is persecution before the prosecution." To this, the bench commented, "You are not a layman. You are a minister. You should know the consequences." The bench then posted the matter for hearing on March 15. DMK leader Stalin made remarks comparing 'Sanatana Dharma' to diseases like 'malaria' and 'dengue' while advocating for its elimination on grounds that it was rooted in the caste system and historical discrimination. His remarks triggered a massive political controversy across the country. It led to several criminal complaints being filed against him. (ANI)
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