CJ did not say he lost confidence in TN police: Jaya

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa today asserted that Madras High Court Chief Justice S K Kaul did not say he had lost confidence in the state police as reported in a section of media.
Speaking in the state assembly on the issue related to security in the high court campus following some protests, she dared DMK President M Karunanidhi to file an impleading petition in the case if his party really felt that the state police could not provide security to the court.
She made the remarks after DMK member E V Velu referred to the issue during a debate on demands for grants of the Home Department.

"I would like to categorically state that the news reports in a section of the media that Chief Justice had on September 18 said that he has lost confidence in state police is not true. The truth is that he did not express any such view," Jayalalithaa said.
The high court had suggested central security cover by agency such as Central Industrial Security Force in the backdrop of ruckus created by a group of lawyers demanding Tamil as the court language on September 14.
Following this, the state government informed the court that the principal bench here and Madurai Bench campus had been declared 'high security zone' but the government opposed CISF cover.

Karunanidhi had taken up the issue to target the ruling AIADMK by claiming that "the High Court itself had lost confidence in the state police."

Jayalalithaa said the court had been assured that adequate security would be provided to it and that there was no need for CISF security.
She said there were violent incidents during the previous Karunanidhi-led regime in the Madras Law College campus in 2008 and in the high court premises in 2009.
Citing a requisition by the high court for CISF security in 2009, she asked "does it mean that the then Chief Minister Karunanidhi did not function properly, shall we take it as loss of court's faith on the then regime"?

"Does Karunanidhi and DMK really feel that the state police could not provide security to the High Court and that only the CISF could do it, or do they do it for political mileage? she asked.
Referring to the 2009 police-lawyers clash, she said since then there had been a "big gap" between the police personnel and advocates which was now being set right.