SUO MOTU Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The notice of this Court was drawn to a recent judgment that was passed by the learned Principal District Court, Vellore in Special Case No.3 of 2022 based on a transfer order passed on the administrative side of the Madras High Court. The attention of this Court was also drawn to the fact that substantial proceedings were conducted by the Principal District Court, Villupuram and that at the fag end, the case came to be transferred to the file of the Principal District Court, Vellore. This Court felt that there is something seriously amiss about the procedure adopted in transferring the case to a different Court and that too at the fag end of the trial. To top it all, the attention of the Court was also drawn to the fact that final arguments were submitted by way of written submissions on 23/6/2023 and within a span of 4 days ie., on 28/6/2023 the Principal District Judge, Vellore had managed to write a 226-page judgment acquitting the accused. The learned Principal District Judge, Vellore demitted office shortly thereafter on 30/6/2023.

(2.) As a judge holding the portfolio for cases relating to MP/MLA's I thought it fit to call for the entire records of Special Case No.3 of 2022 from the Principal District Court, Vellore. On going through the same the doubts entertained by this Court on the strange procedure followed in this case was proved right. The factual backdrop and the sequence of events which ultimately led to the acquittal of the accused are as under:

(3.) Mr.K Ponmudi was the Minister of Transport and a Member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly between 13/5/1996 and 30/9/2001. During the said period, the Minister is alleged to have acquired and come into possession of properties and other pecuniary resources in his name and the names of his wife and sons, which were disproportionate to his known sources of income. An FIR in Crime No.4 of 2002 was registered by the Cuddalore Village, Anti-Corruption Department on 14/3/2002 under Sec. 109 IPC read with Ss. 13(1)(e) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 against Ponmudi (A1), his wife Visalakshi (A2), his mother-in-law Mrs.P.Saraswathi (A3), A. Manivannan (A4) and A. Nandagopal (A5) who are the friends of A1.