Madras HC issues suo moto notice to TN minister, in disproportionate assets case

Chennai, Aug 10 (BPNS)

Madras High Court on Thursday issued a suo moto notice to Tamil Nadu higher education minister, K. Ponmudi and his wife Visalatchi to appear before it on September 7, 2023. The single bench judge of the Madras High Court, Justice N. Anand Venkatesh had taken up a case in which the Vellore court had acquitted the couple.

Justice Anand Venkatesh directed the court registry to issue notice to the minister and his wife for hearing on September 7, 2023. The registry is also directed to place a copy of this order before the Chief Justice of the Madras High Court for information, the judge said. The court also issued notice to the Tamil Nadu Vigilance department in the case.

The single bench judge on Thursday said that this was one of a very serious cases that he has come through.

It may be noted that a Vellore court had acquitted the Tamil Nadu higher education minister and his wife in a case related to amassing wealth disproportionate to their income on June 28, 2022 which is now questioned by the Madras High Court single bench judge.

Justice Anand Venkatesh, has used the provisions of Section 397 of CrPc that empowers the high court or judge to call for and examine the record of any proceeding before any subordinate criminal court within its jurisdiction.  The case against K. Ponmudi and his wife K. Visalatchi was registered in 2002 when AIADMK returned to power stating that he had got 1.4 crore disproportionate to the known sources of his income.

The prosecution had charged Ponmudy with amassing illegal assets when he was minister in the DMK government between 1996 and 2001.

The Vellore magistrate court judge Vasanthasheela had on June 28, 2023 acquitted the minister and his wife stating that the prosecution had failed to furnish sufficient and legally acceptable evidence against the accused.

The Single bench of the Madras High Court will now test the correctness of the judgment of the Vellore court. It may be noted that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had questioned the minister on July 17 and July 18^th and had frozen his fixed deposit of 41.9 crore rupees.

The Madras High Court taking suo moto action against the Higher Education Minister, K. Ponmudi is a major setback to the Chief Minister, M.K. Stalin, and the DMK. The Chief Minister had during the Enforcement Directorate raids at the residence and other premises of the Minister on July 7^th and 8^th stated that the central government agency was harassing the minister who was acquitted by the Vellore court.