TN Govt hopes SC will reconsider its order

Chennai, Dec 5 (UNI) The Tamil Nadu Government today hoped that the Supreme Court will reconsider its order, directing the State Home Secretary to appear before the court on January 28 in connection with a Public Interest Litigation on road safety.

The apex court had on November 30 directed the Home Secretary to personally appear before it for the State Government's failure to file its response to the petition, seeking a direction to the Union and State Governments for improving the road condition, infrastructure, traffic laws and medical facilities.

When the case came up for hearing yesterdey, the apex court did not accept the oral submissions made by the Government on why it could not file the response.

The Government had decided to file a detailed counter before the court, highlighting that it was not at fault. Based on this, the Government hoped that the apex court would reconsider its order on the personal appearance of the Home Secretary, an official release here said.

The release said the Government had filed a detailed counter to the petition, filed in 2003, in March 2005 itself. The court had asked the Centre and the State to file its response to the suggestions of the petitioner in February 2006. But, Tamil Nadu had neither received the suggestions of the petitioner, nor the orders of the court.

''It might have reached the then Advocate of the State Government. But, it had definitely not reached the Home Secretary,'' the release said.

After the change of guard in the State in May 2006, the Government Advocate in the Supreme Court was changed and it was intimated to the Registrar. But the Registry had not sent the communications pertaining to the case to the present advocate on record, or to the State Government. This was the reason why the State Government could not be represented when the case came up for hearing on November 30, it added.

UNI