Madras HC to review acquittal of two Tamil Nadu ministers in disproportionate assets case

The two ministers, both from the DMK, were charged with amassing wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income, during the period 2006-11

The Madras high court on Wednesday initiated a suo motu (on its own) revision case against two Tamil Nadu ministers, Thangam Thennarasu and KKSSR Ramachandran, who were acquitted by a special court in disproportionate assets cases filed against them.

The hearing in matter was posted for September 20 (PTI ohoto)

The two ministers, both from the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), were charged with amassing wealth disproportionate to their known sources of income, during the period 2006-11. The DMK was in power during the period, before losing power to its rival AIADMK, which ruled the southern state for the next 10 years.

After the DMK formed the government again in May 2021, the special court for MP/MLA cases at Srivilliputhur in Virudhunagar district discharged state’s finance minister Thennarasu, and minister for revenue and disaster management Ramachandran in December 2022 and July this year, respectively.

“It is all too apparent that upon a change of power in the state in 2021, the identities of the accused and the prosecution were obliterated as all the players in the game suddenly found themselves belonging to the same team,” Justice N Anand Venkatesh said, taking up the revision case. “Realising this, the umpire — the special court — appears to have decided that the wisest course open to it was to get itself out hit wicket. This, therefore, is yet another instance of a criminal trial being derailed by the active design of those at the helm of political power.”

The high court warned that if this “trend goes unchecked” the special courts meant for MP/MLA trials would become a “playground for all sorts of condemnable practices which are handcrafted and orchestrated to subvert and derail the criminal justice system”.

Subsequently, the court ordered issuing of notices against Thennarasu and his wife T Manimegalai, Ramachandran and his wife R Aadhilakshmi and his friend KSP Shanmugamoorthy, besides the state government.

“This court smelt a rat and called for the entire records of these two cases,” Justice Venkatesh said, borrowing a quote from Shakespeare’s Hamlet: “Something is rotten in the State of Denmark”.

On examining the records, the judge added, “this court is of the considered opinion that something is very rotten in the special court for MP/MLA cases at Srivilluputhur.”

Both orders revealed a well-orchestrated pattern, the judge said, adding that after the political fortunes in the state smiled at the main accused who regained their positions as ministers in the state cabinet, they had in a “perfectly timed move” filed discharge petitions. And the prosecution “very magnanimously” came forward and offered to conduct “further investigation”, the judge said.

“The product of this ‘further investigation’ was a ‘closure report’ tailored to support the grounds for discharge,” the court said. “The special court was then presented with a perfect fiat accompli as the prosecution suddenly whitewashed its earlier final report and presented a picture of complete innocence.”

In December 2011, months after the AIADMK came to power, the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) registered a case against Ramachandran, his wife and friend for allegedly possessing ₹44.59 lakh disproportionate to their known sources of income. Ramachandran served as the state’s health minister (2006 to 2007) and minister for backward classes (2007 to 2011). However, in July this year, the special court accepted DVAC’s closure report that pegged the disproportionate assets to only ₹1.49 lakh.

Similarly, the DVAC registered a case against Thennarasu (then education minister) and his wife in February 2012 alleging that they possessed ₹74.58 lakh disproportionate assets. The special court accepted a closure report in the case in December last year.

Pointing out at various “illegalities” in both cases, the high court judge said: “I have no hesitation in holding that this is a case where I must exercise my revisional powers suo motu under Article 227 of the Constitution & Sections 397/401 CrPC [Code of Criminal Procedure]. In cases of this nature, it is the duty of the high court to interfere and prevent miscarriage of justice.”

The hearing in matter was posted for September 20.

This is the second time that justice Venkatesh suo motu exercised the revisional jurisdiction of the high court — the power to revise cases decided by subordinate courts — against a minister. On August 10, he initiated a similar case against another DMK minister K Ponmudy and his wife following their acquittal in a disproportionate assets case by a trial court in Vellore in June this year.