Chennai: The Madras High Court has adjourned the appeal filed against a court order that set aside fresh show cause notices issued to DMK legislators, including the then Leader of Opposition MK Stalin, for bringing banned gutkha sachets into the Assembly in July 2017.

The sachets were displayed in the House to highlight the widespread menace of gutkha consumption.

The appeal, challenging the quashing of the show cause notices by the privileges committee, was heard by a division bench comprising Justice SM Subramaniam and Justice C Kumarappan. The appeal was moved by the then ruling AIADMK party.

The court had initially set aside the fresh show cause notices issued against the legislators, which led to the appeal from the AIADMK. The privileges committee had issued these notices in response to the legislators’ actions, considering it a breach of privilege.

During the hearing, Advocate S Manuraj, representing the respondents, sought additional time to obtain instructions from his clients. Following this request, the bench adjourned the matter to July 29 (Monday) for the final submission.

The gutkha case has been a contentious issue, drawing attention to the larger problem of banned substances and their prevalence in the state.