The Supreme Court set aside the interim order passed by the Madras High Court which prohibited the Tamil Nadu Government from using the name of Chief Minister MK Stalin for the ‘Ungaludan Stalin’ (Your Stalin) scheme announced to create awareness about welfare programmes.

A bench comprising Chief Justice of India BR Gavai, Justice K Vinod Chandran and Justice NV Anjaria passed the direction in the petitions filed by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) party as well as the Tamil Nadu Government against the High Court’s order. The High Court’s order had restrained the use of names and photographs of living personalities, former Chief Ministers, party leaders or political parties for government welfare schemes.

The Supreme Court was critical of the conduct of AIADMK MP C.Ve Shanmugam (the petitioner before the HC) in singling out only the scheme of the TN Government in his challenge when such schemes in the names of leaders were common across the country. The Court noted the submission of DMK that during the term of AIADMK several schemes were carried out in the name of leaders.

“The planting of schemes in the name of political leaders is a phenomenon which is followed across the country. When such schemes are floated in the name of all leaders of political parties, we do not appreciate the anxiety of the petitioner to choose only one political party and one political leader. If the petitioner was so concerned about the misuse of political funds, the petitioner could have made a challenge to all such schemes. However, singling out only one political leader shows the intentions of the petitioner,” the Court observed.

The Court also noted with disapproval that the petitioner had rushed to the High Court within three days of making a representation to the Election Commission of India. The Court observed that the writ petition was not only “misconceived in law” but also an “abuse of the process of law.”