The Madurai bench of the Madras high court on Wednesday stayed defamation proceedings initiated by the state government against the Congress' Vilavancode MLA S Vijayadharani. The case is pending before the district sessions court, Nagercoil, in Kanyakumari district.

Vijayadharani and former president of the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee E V K S Elangovan and Vijayadharani allegedly made comments the chief minister at a public meeting of the party at Karungal in Kanyakumari district on July 29 last year.