The editor of The Hindu newspaper N. Ravi today welcomed Tamil Nadu CM J. Jayalalithaa’s decision to withdraw defamation cases against the media and the move to drop the privilege issues taken by the state Assembly.
The cases had marked a difficult period of relations between the media and the government, Ravi said in a statement.
‘‘Now that they are out of the way, it should be possible to build a healthy professional relationship based on openness, independence, fairness and balance,’’ he said.
Ravi said the campaign against the criminal defamation law that makes for harassment, and legislative privilege which vests legislatures with absolute power to punish the media, needed to be continued.