‘Nakkeeran’ sorry for Jaya article

CHENNAI: In a bid to end the controversy relating to publication of a “defamatory” article on chief minister J Jayalaltihaa, the Tamil bi-weekly “Nakkeeran” on Thursday told the Madras high court that it has realized its mistake and was prepared to publish a regret message. “Counsel for the respondents (editor R R Gopal and associate editor A Kamaraj) very fairly submitted that they have realized their mistake and that they are publishing a regret message on the cover page of the next issue and that they will also withdraw the allegations made (against Jayalalithaa),” said the first bench comprising Chief Justice M Y Eqbal and Justice T S Sivagnanam on Thursday. Recording the statements made on behalf of the duo, the judges directed their counsel to file an affidavit in that regard. They were passing orders on a contempt of court petition filed by chief minister Jayalalithaa stating that the duo had published a grossly defamatory article against her in violation of the April 6, 2006 order of the high court, which had said the magazine should not publish any personal details of Jayalalithaa without incorporating her version. The bench then adjourned the matter to January 18 for further hearing.In a separate but related development, a single judge of the court granted conditional anticipatory bail to Gopal and Kamaraj, stating that they should not publish anything disparaging against Jayalalithaa.Justice M M Sundresh, granting anticipatory bail to the duo, said they should “not publish any such derogatory and disparaging material touching upon the personal life of chief minister of Tamil Nadu. He asked them to sign before the Zam Bazaar police in the city daily at 10.30am for a period of four weeks.