HC clears decks for revision plea against ex-DMK ministers

Madras High Court today permitted state vigilance and anti corruption officials to file revision petitions against lower courts' orders discharging three former DMK Ministers from disproportionate assets cases and condoned the delay ranging from four to five years.
The cases pertained to DMK regime from 1996 and 2001.
V&AC officials had moved the court seeking to condone the delay of 1,752 days in the case against M R K Panneerselvam, 1,903 days in the case against Veerapandi S Arumugam and 1,789 days in the case of Durai Murugan, in filing revisions petition against trial courts' orders.
Panneerselvam, Arumugam, who died recently, and Murugan were ministers for Backward Classes, Agriculture and Public Works departments respectively during the DMK regime between 1996 and 2001.

V&AC officials had registered cases against the three, but trial courts had discharged them.
After hearing submissions from both sides, Justice T Sudanthiram, in a common order, said, ".. It is clear that the prosecuting agency was interested in preferring revisions, but the government turned down the proposal informing that the cases were not fit for filing revision".

When it was proposed to file revision petitions, the three individuals were ministers in the subsequent government.
Refusing to accept the respondents' counsel who contended that the revisions were filed due to political ill will, the judge said, "This is not the stage to decide whether revisions are filed vexatiously on ill will and a chance must be given to the state, which had reviewed its decision".

"There is a hue and cry among the public regarding corruption by public servants. It is the duty of the court to ensure that corrupt members are not escaping from the clutches of law on mere technicalities," the judge said.
"Totality of the circumstances compels this court to hold that there is 'sufficient cause' to condone the delay in preferring the revision petitions," he added.