Chennai Press Club president and two other journalists move Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail

Chennai Press Club president M. Suresh Vedhanayagam, 52, and journalists D. Prakash and S. Sarath Kumar have approached the Madras High Court seeking anticipatory bail in a criminal case booked by the Vepery police in Chennai for allegedly projecting a fellow journalist as an extortionist.Justice N. Ramesh on Thursday (October 29, 2026) adjourned the hearing to Monday (November 2, 2026) since the prosecution sought time to file a counter affidavit to the advance bail plea. The judge refused to grant any kind of interim relief to the three petitioners till the next date of hearing.N. Ravichandran, serving as a crime Reporter in a private Tamil news television channel, had lodged the complaint accusing the three petitioners of having shared false information on various WhatsApp groups as if the complainant attempted to extort ₹5 lakh from an Inspector of Police.In his advance bail plea, Mr. Vedhanayagam said that he had been serving as a journalist since 1996 and had obtained government accreditation in 1999. After listing out various news dailies in which he had served since the beginning of his career, the petitioner said, he had been serving a Chief Reporter for the last 15 years.“At present, I serve as the president of the Chennai Press Club. I was elected as the president of the press club by several journalists and this stands as testament to my good reputation and sincerity in my profession,” the petitioner said and claimed that a false complaint had been lodged against him.He apprehended arrest in the case booked under Sections 353(1)(b) (circulating false information with intent to cause fear or alarm), 351(2) (criminal intimidation) and 356 (defamation) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita and said, he would be put to great hardship and inconvenience if advance bail was not granted.“I hail from a respectable family having good reputation among the friends and relatives and if anticipatory bail is not granted to me, my reputation among the relatives and friends would be maligned and further my entire career would be spoiled and I will be put to much hardship,” his petition read. Published - October 29, 2026 07:56 pm IST