Chennai: Chief Minister M K Stalin ordered the withdrawal of over 90 defamation cases filed against various media outlets by the State government between 2012 and 2021 on Thursday.
The cases were filed against a wide range of media organisations – English and Tamil daily newspapers, Tamil periodicals and English and Tamil television channels –taking to task the editorial staff, printers and publishers of print media organisations and also persons interviewed in news channels.
An official press release said that the DMK’s election manifesto had a promise to withdraw the cases against media outlets if the party came to power.
The Chennai Press Club thanked the Chief Minister for his gesture that would go a long way in strengthening freedom of expression in the State. The club’s joint secretary Bharathi Tamilan said that the order had confirmed that intimidation of the media was now a thing of the past.
