Chennai, Aug 8 (Reporter) The criminal case against Karnataka Lok Sabha MP and Union Minister Shobha Karandlaje can be quashed if she tendered an apology for her remarks linking Tamils with the Rameswaram Cafe blast in Bengaluru, the Tamil Nadu government informed the Madras High Court. The pending case against the Union Minister of State for MSME, Labour and Employment, can be quashed if she hold a press meet and tender an apology for her objectionable remarks, Advocate General (AG) PS Raman told the court. During the hearing of the petition filed by the Union Minister seeking to quash the criminal case filed against her by the Madurai Cybercrime police by Justice G Jayachandran , the AG submitted a draft apology letter on behalf of the State government. The AG sought the Court to direct the petitioner to convene a press meeting to tender apology for her objectionable remarks. He also submitted that if the petitioner agreed to tender an apology then her petition seeking to quash the criminal case can be allowed. Though her counsel informed the court that she was willing to file an affidavit expressing apology, the court opined that it would be more appropriate to hold a press conference and apologize as the comments were also made publicly. The counsel for the petitioner sought time to get instructions from his client regarding the apology. After the submission, the judge observed that since the petitioner's remarks sent wrong message to the society, it should be cleared. The judge asked the counsel to put across the draft apology to the petitioner and get her instructions, if she is agree to tender apology and that she had high regard for the people of Tamil Nadu. Later, the matter was adjourned to August 16 for further hearing. During the hearing, the Judge orally observed that people in power should be more conscious while making statements. The allegation against Ms Shobha was that in March 2024, after the blasts in Rameshwaram café, she had allegedly said, “People trained in Tamil Nadu plant bombs here. Bomb was planted at the hotel.” Following this, one Thiagarajan, a resident of Madurai, lodged a complaint stating that the alleged remark was intended to create enmity and hatred among Tamils and Kannadigas. The court had previously questioned the statements made by Ms Shobha Karandlaje and asked how the Minister could link the blasts with the people of Tamil Nadu even before the National Investigation Agency (NIA) conducted its searches. In her petition, the Minister submitted that the FIRs were filed with ulterior motives and were an abuse of process. She said she had already retracted her remarks clarifying her intentions and apologizing for the statements. The Union Minister said putting the criminal law in motion despite this is malicious and hits the core of freedom of speech and expression guaranteed under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution...////...