I will face it when it comes before court: T R Baalu

New Delhi, Oct 5: Union Shipping, Road Transport and Highways Minister T R Baalu today said he was not worried about those challenging him in the court for his observations on the Ram Sethu issue.

''I will face it when it comes before court,'' he told reporters on the sidelines of the 2nd Regional Conference of International Road Conference.

Former Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) President M N Krishnamani, in a letter to Supreme Court Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan, has requested him to set up a constitution bench comprising five seniormost judges to initiate contempt of court proceedings against Mr Baalu for making allegedly derogatory remarks on the judges and also for tarnishing the reputation of the apex court.

Mr Krishnamani, in his letter of October 2, has also requested the Chief Justice to treat his letter as a petition for action against Mr Baalu, whose ministry is in charge of the Rs 2427 crore Setusamudram Shipping Canal Project (SSCP).

Mr Baalu has reportedly attributed motives to Justice B N Agarwal for his remarks made during the hearing of the petition challenging the validity of the call given by the ruling DMK for a statewise bandh on October 1, demanding speedy completion of the project.

Asked for his reaction on the issue, Mr Baalu merely stated that ''I am not worried about the people challenging me. I will face it when it comes up before the court.'' The Supreme Court has already issued directions to the Centre not to damage the Ram Sethu while carrying out dredging.

Mr Krishnamani, in his letter, has referred to newspaper reports in the October 2 edition of two national dailies, in which Baalu had used a slang 'komban', a Tamil word meaning 'autocratic', for the Supreme Court judges.

He has also sent copies of the letter to Justices Agarwal and Ashok Bhan, the two seniormost judges after the CJI.

UNI