On Sunday, Justice SM Subramaniam, the Madras High Court Judge in a letter to the Chief Justice Amreshwar Pratap Sahi has sought to initiate suo moto criminal contempt of court proceedings against actor Suriya over his remarks on the Supreme Court upholding the Central government’s decision to conduct the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test (NEET) in the midst of a pandemic.
As per reports, following the suicide of four students in Tamil Nadu over their fear for the NEET exam, the Tamil actor on his official Twitter account commented on the functioning of courts amid the COVID-19 pandemic and stated that “Fearing threat to lives due to Covid-19, judges were dispensing justice via video conferencing, but ordered students to write NEET exam without fear.”
Suriya’s statement came after four NEET aspirants in Tamil Nadu committed suicide on Saturday due to fear and stress, just a day before appearing for the common entrance test NEET.
Subsequently, actor Suriya reacted to the above incident and urged the government to permanently scrap NEET while claiming that it kills the dreams of children from poor families. He further urged the society to raise their voice against NEET and asked them not to be silent spectators of student suicides.
Soon after the actor’s comments over NEET exams and the Indian Judiciary, Justice SM Subramaniam of the Madras High Court refuted Suriya’s statement and said that the actor’s opinion amounts to contempt of court as the integrity and devotion of the judges as well as the judicial system is not only undermined but criticized in bad shape, wherein there is a threat for the public confidence on the judiciary. “Suriya has committed contempt, warranting contempt proceedings to uphold the majesty of the Indian judicial system,” he added.
As per sources, a few days ago, Vignesh a farmer’s son, who had got a seat in a private dental college last year, died by suicide as his family couldn’t afford Rs. 5 Lakh which was needed for his admission. His parents mentioned that he was under stress. On the other hand, on Saturday, Motilal, a trader’s son in Tiruchengode town in Namakkal district, and Aditya, a scrap merchant’s son in Dharmapuri committed suicide, a day before NEET which was scheduled for Sunday. Reportedly, both of them had failed the exam last year. In yet another similar incident, Jothishri Durga, a sub-inspector’s daughter who had cleared NEET last year but was on the waiting list committed suicide while stating in her suicide note that she was apprehensive of failure.
The Tamil actor in his Twitter post also said that he wants students to be prepared for both success and failure.
