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Chennai , Nov. 10

Mr N. Ram, Editor-in-Chief, The Hindu, today welcomed the Supreme Court's interim stay on the Tamil Nadu Assembly order to arrest the Editor, Publisher and three senior journalists of The Hindu and the Editor of Murasoli and hoped that the authorities concerned would heed the apex court's order.

He said that the court's order was clear in that they should not be arrested in any part of India and that the order should be communicated to the Director General of Police. If anyone claims that it did not apply to them, they were doing so at their own peril, he told a questioner.

Mr Ram asserted that the law was clear - the Constitution was supreme, not the Tamil Nadu Assembly. "If Mr Kalimuthu (Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker) claims otherwise, he is doing so at his personal peril," he said. Some Speakers (of Legislative Assemblies) might say that they were sovereign; in India, only the Constitution was supreme, not even the Lok Sabha. The courts, and above all the Supreme Court, had the authority to interpret and adjudicate on the Constitution.

He said he was fully confident that justice would be done. Reacting to the apex court's order today, he said, "We feel humble before the court." If they (the authorities in the State) consciously defied the order then a case was made out for the breakdown of the Constitution, he added.

Reacting to the statement issued by Mr K. Kalimuthu, Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker, on Sunday that there was no interference from the Chief Minister, Mr Ram wondered who the scriptwriter for the statement was. Does the Speaker have powers to ask the police to go to Bangalore to arrest those mentioned in the Assembly order, he asked.

"They have lost the battle at the starting block because it (the Assembly's order) violates freedom of speech and expression," he said.

The Tamil Nadu Assembly on Friday sentenced the Publisher, Editor and three journalists of The Hindu to 15 days simple imprisonment for alleged breach of privilege in an editorial published in April and the editor of Murasoli for a similar period for publishing a translation of the editorial in question.

The police in Tamil Nadu have demonstrated a wrong attitude by trying to use "muscle power". The Hindu is considering legal action. They had first entered the office premises without a warrant and had "trespassed" into Mr Ravi's (the editor) office. Their actions in Bangalore were also "illegal", Mr Ram said.

He urged that "at least now, in this State the police should not bow down to pressure" from the political leadership. "They should be bound by ethics." Examples of high standards of behaviour are not wanting in the police force and there have been officers who have demonstrated such force of character. Intelligent officers, including Mr Vijayakumar (Commissioner of Police), should match words with deeds. They should resist unjust pressure or if required step down or ask for a transfer, Mr Ram said.

Mr N. Murali, Joint Managing Director, The Hindu, said that in the last three days the police had fanned out. They had been desperate to get at least one of them.

Mr Ram said that to address the larger issue of the privilege of the legislature and the defamation cases, the Indian Newspaper Society would organise nationwide colloquiums on the subject to generate awareness.

The Hindu will also re-look its legal strategy to face the defamation cases - 17 in all - filed against it by the Government. "In my opinion, it is mala fide and totally baseless," he said.

The entire episode, Mr Ram said, had brought out two important truths - one was the power of the press and news media, and the other the confidence in the Supreme Court. The spontaneous reaction to the Assembly order from all over the country had helped bring this issue on to the centre stage. It was not just one concerning The Hindu but involved freedom of speech and expression, and issues of life and liberty.

The Hindu would also prepare a detailed account of the incidents - from the time the police entered the office premises without a warrant, to the attempt to enter the locked room of Mr N. Ravi, to the interception of the car in which Mr Ram, Mr Murali and their wives were travelling in Bangalore - and present it to the Union Home Ministry. It would also look at legal action.

Mr Ram noted that the Speaker's statement was deafeningly silent about the point made in Mr Ravi's 14-page response to the Assembly, when it called for an explanation for alleged breach of privilege - that of being given a personal hearing to further explain his stand and to be represented.

Would he consider giving any advice to the Chief Minister? Mr Ram said it was not for him to do so, but said it was for Ms Jayalalithaa to consider her position and take decisions in her own interest. She had other problems, including the TANSI case, in which the Supreme Court had reserved judgment. "She has other problems and concerns in her mind. She didn't need this misadventure," he said.

The crowded press conference was held in the newspaper's premises with all the directors.

Jubilation over court order

SPONTANEOUS cheer and applause from scores of employees, and crackers going off, as the workers rejoiced, greeted The Hindu's Editor-in-Chief, Mr N. Ram, as he drove into office this morning. They were celebrating the Supreme Court's order granting interim stay of on the Tamil Nadu Assembly's order to arrest jail the Publisher, Editor and three senior journalists.

In Mr Ram's own words, he "stood in awe before the power of the truth and the power of the press. In awe of the faith reposed in the Supreme Court, a faith that stands vindicated on the question of the freedom of press. I stand humble before the Supreme Court".

He thanked everyone concerned, the entire journalist fraternity, the radio, the television channels, the internet-based news providers and the print media, for standing by in the cause of press freedom and supporting The Hindu and Murasoli.

He thanked the media for the interest in the issue. "The interest and the coverage and the solidarity expressed has made it possible," he said.

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