Madras High Court clears DMK to file Rs 1 crore defamation suit against Aadhav Arjuna and Nirmal Kumar

The Madras High Court has cleared the way for the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) to file a Rs 1 crore defamation lawsuit against ministers Aadhav Arjuna and C.T.R. Nirmal Kumar, alongside the IT wing of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).

Justice K. Govindarajan Thilakavadi granted the ruling party permission on Monday, 5 October 2026, to proceed with the legal action. The DMK, represented by senior counsel J. Ravindran, had to seek special permission—known legally as "leave of the court"—because several of the key players are located outside the high court's immediate territorial jurisdiction. These include the TVK’s IT division and the regional headquarters of major social media giants, such as Meta Platforms, X Corp, and YouTube, where the allegedly defamatory statements were circulated.

The core allegations

The dispute stems from highly sensitive allegations involving a child abuse case. In its plaint, filed through DMK General Secretary Duraimurugan, the party accused the two ministers and the TVK IT wing of running a smear campaign. The defendants reportedly accused the DMK of shielding R. Veeramani, a businessman associated with Gem Granites, who is facing charges under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

According to the DMK, these claims are entirely baseless. The party told the court that its administration had acted with utmost speed when the allegations against Veeramani first came to light. The police registered a First Information Report (FIR) on 7 October 2025—exactly one day after a child rights activist handed over a video recording of the alleged sexual assault of a minor girl.

The DMK insisted that the police investigation proceeded strictly in accordance with the law, based on available evidence, and without any political interference. The party maintained it had no connection, formal or informal, with Veeramani or his business interests.

Procedural objections from the defence

Aadhav Arjuna and Nirmal Kumar mounted a strong procedural defence to stop the case from moving forward. They argued that the lawsuit was legally flawed from the start because the DMK had ignored the rules laid down in the Code of Civil Procedure.

Because they were being sued in their official capacities as members of the state cabinet, the ministers argued they were entitled to protections under Section 80 of the code. They claimed the DMK was required to either serve them with formal statutory notices before launching the lawsuit, or obtain explicit permission from the court to skip that step. However, the court's decision on Monday means the DMK can now move forward with the substantive defamation case.