Seeman opposes defamation suit moved by DIG

Chennai: The Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) chief coordinator, Seeman, who is battling a defamation suit filed by the deputy inspector-general of police, Varun Kumar, has told the Madras HC that the officer was unable to digest even fair criticism.The court has already restrained Seeman from making any derogatory and unsubstantiated statements against the officer. On Tuesday, Seeman filed a counter-affidavit to the IPS officer's suit.On Aug 4, the court passed an interim injunction against Seeman, while admitting the suit moved by Varun Kumar, alleging that Seeman began a personal tirade against him ever since he acted against an NTK member, ‘Sattai' Duraimurugan. On Tuesday, when the plea came up for hearing, advocate Shankar, representing Seeman, submitted that criticism is a basic right in a democracy, which reflects its true spirit, and wondered how Varun Kumar, being an IPS officer, misconstrued such criticism as an affront. TNN