CHENNAI: The editor of Tamil bi-weekly Nakkheeran R. Gopal Thursday expressed regret to the Madras High Court for publishing an article describing Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa as a beef eater and agreed to withdraw the article and publish an apology in the forthcoming issue.
When the contempt of court petition filed on behalf of Jayalalithaa came up for hearing, a bench comprising of Chief Justice M.Y. Eqal and Justice T.S. Sivagnanam directed the magazine to publich an apology on its first page as demanded by the petitioner.
The counsel for the magazine editor and the assistant editor submitted to the court that the magazine would withdraw the article when the petition for contempt of court came up for hearing.
The bench also ordered publication of the apology on the first page of the next edition.
The contempt of court petition came up as there is a 2006 court order that stipulated that the magazine should not publish matters concerning her without getting her nod.
In another case the Madras High Court granted anticipatory bail to Gopal, who apprehended arrest by the state police that had filed more than 20 first information reports (FIR) against him.