HC orders notice to Jaya over shifting TN Assembly, secretariat

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court today ordered notice to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, the Chief Secretary and Public Works Secretary on a PIL petition seeking an interim injunction to prevent the Tamil Nadu Government from shifting the state Secretariat and Assembly from the complex built by previous DMK Government to Fort St George.

Petitioner G Krishnamurthy, an advocate, submitted that the DMK government built the new assembly-cum-secretariat complex in the Omandarur Government Estate off Anna Salai at a cost of over Rs 1,000 crore.

He said media reports suggested that the new AIADMK government was "adamant" on abandoning the new complex and revert to the old complex at Fort St George.

The petitioner claimed the move to shift the assembly-secretariat was not on the basis of any government decision but due to the preference of AIADMK supremo Jayalalithas and the leaders of the coalition that won the recent Assembly elections.

When the matter came up hearing before the Bench of Justices S Rajeswaran and KBK Vasuki, the petitioner contended that the Chief Secretary and the Public Secretary were acting "undemocratically" at the instance of the Chief Minister.

Responding to the PIL, Justice S Rajeswaran said no government order had been passed with respect to shifting the assembly-secretariat. "At this stage there is no question of interference in the matter", he said.

However, the petitioner insisted that the court take up the matter. A Navaneethakrishnan, the counsel for Jayalalithaa and S Venkatesan, the counsel on behalf of the Chief Secretary and the Public Works Secretary, took the notices.