Today, On 7th August, The Madras High Court dismissed a PIL challenging the appointment of senior IAS officers as Tamil Nadu government spokespersons, stating the appointments did not violate any law, and imposed a cost of Rs.1 lakh on the petitioner.
The Madras High Court dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) on August 7, 2025, which challenged the appointment of senior IAS officers J. Radhakrishnan, Gagandeep Singh Bedi, Dheeraj Kumar, and P. Amudha as official spokespersons for the Tamil Nadu government.
The court ordered that the petitioner, advocate M. Sathya Kumar from Selaiyur in Chennai, pay costs of Rs.1 lakh.
The First Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan, declined to consider the PIL at the admission stage, noting that the appointments were made by the State government and not by the ruling party.
The judges remarked that the appointments did not contravene any laws, providing no grounds for the court to entertain the petition.
During the proceedings, the petitioner’s counsel argued that IAS officers should not be utilized for political roles, even indirectly.
He pointed out that the appointments were announced solely through a press release, with no reference to a Government Order from the Governor sanctioning the appointments.
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He questioned whether the appointments were made with the Council of Ministers’ consultation and argued that the process should undergo a constitutional review, given that it was the first instance of the State government appointing IAS officers as spokespersons.
The counsel emphasized that administrative overreach should be avoided in making such appointments, asserting that the aim of the PIL was to prevent IAS officers from being used to promote the ruling party’s achievements.