2 months ago
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The Madras High Court has initiated suo motu contempt of tribunal proceedings against Felix Gerald, a YouTuber who is present a subordinate of the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), for an interrogation helium antecedently conducted with YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar alias A. Shankar with respect to G-Square Realtors Private Limited.
Justice K. Kumaresh Babu has initiated the suo motu proceedings and ordered the issuance of a tribunal announcement to Mr. Gerald, requiring him to explicate wherefore helium should not beryllium proceeded against for contempt of court. The recently impleaded contemnor has been fixed clip till April 24, 2026, to taxable his explanation.
What is the lawsuit about?
The contented relates to a civilian suit filed by the existent property institution successful 2022 against Mr. Shankar, demanding damages of ₹1 crore, on with involvement astatine the complaint of 12% from the day of filing of the suit till its realisation, for having made definite defamatory allegations against it.
Pending adjudication of the civilian suit, it had besides filed an exertion seeking an interim injunction restraining Mr. Shankar, his agents, employees, oregon anyone – whether nether him oregon done him – from making, printing, writing, posting, oregon publishing immoderate defamatory allegations oregon slanderous worldly against the existent property company.
On September 8, 2022, Justice C.V. Karthikeyan granted the interim injunction aft being convinced that the alleged defamatory statements made by Mr. Shankar would prima facie impact the mean people of concern of the realtor and that they did not look to beryllium based connected facts.
Thereafter, successful 2023, the YouTuber filed an exertion to vacate the interim injunction. Justice Babu disposed of that exertion connected June 26, 2023, by making definite modifications to the 2022 order. The justice insisted that Mr. Shankar enactment the existent property institution connected announcement earlier making immoderate nationalist statements against it.
He directed Mr. Shankar to nonstop an email to G-Square earlier making immoderate connection and hold for 72 hours. “If immoderate effect is received wrong 72 hours, past the applicant whitethorn marque a connection and successful doing so, helium shall besides people the effect received by him with prominence. If nary specified effect is received wrong the aforesaid period, helium shall proceed to people the article,” the justice had ordered.
After this order, G-Square filed a contempt of tribunal petition against Mr. Shankar successful 2024. During the people of the proceeding of the contempt petition connected March 27, 2026, a transcript of the 2024 interrogation was placed earlier the court.
“A perusal of the said interrogation would bespeak that the contemnor during the people of the interrogation had expressed that if a question is enactment to him with respect to G-Square whether it volition beryllium imaginable for him to instantly reply oregon hold for 72 hrs to springiness an reply to the question. The big had besides responded by saying that the bid cannot beryllium understood successful specified a manner,” the justice wrote aft watching the interview.
He went connected to write: “When a categorical absorption has been issued to the contemnor, the knowing of the contemnor whether helium has to hold for 72 hours for a question that has been enactment up to him is successful nonstop usurpation of the bid passed against him. The big besides had expressed his presumption that the bid could not beryllium understood successful specified a manner.”
Observing that the host, Mr. Gerald, excessively appeared to person committed contempt of tribunal orders, the justice called for his residential code and initiated the suo motu contempt proceedings.
