HC quashes charge memo against IPS officer

The Madras High Court Tuesday quashed the charge memo issued to IPS officer G Sampath Kumar for his alleged involvement in the 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL) betting and match-fixing scam.

The Home Secretary, the Government of Tamil Nadu, had issued the memo on September 11, 2015.

A division bench of justices K K Sasidharan and P T Asha allowed Kumar's petition seeking quashing of the order of the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT), upholding the charge memo, primarily on the ground that the competent authorities had failed to obtain prior sanction from the state home ministry, which is mandatory.

The bench, however, gave liberty to the government to proceed afresh after obtaining appropriate sanction from the home ministry.

In his affidavit, the petitioner said he was appointed the Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP) through the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission (TNPSC) on December 16, 1991, and got conferred IPS in 2009.

It was during his stint as the Superintendent of Police, Q Branch CID (Internal Security) that he had unearthed a wide network of bookies while investigating a fake passport racket case.

Subsequently, the case was taken up for investigation by the CB-CID and false charges of extortion of money were levelled against him with ulterior motives, he said.

The charge memo issued to him in 2014 levelled eight charges.

A plea moved by Kumar challenging the memo was dismissed by the CAT in 2015, following which he approached the high court.