The 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.
A single bench judge of Justice N. Anand Venkatesh directed the court registry to issue notice as it took up a case of disproportionate assets in which a Vellore court had acquitted the couple.
The registry was also directed to place a copy of the 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.
Justice Venkatesh said that this was one of a very serious cases that he has come through.
A Vellore court had acquitted the 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.
Justice Venkatesh has used the provisions of Section 397 of the 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 Ponmudi and his wife was registered in 2002 when AIADMK returned to power stating that he had got Rs 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 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 Madras High Court will now test the correctness of the judgment of the Vellore court.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had questioned the minister on July 17 and July 18 and had frozen his fixed deposit of Rs 41.9 crore rupees.
The Madras High Court decision comes as a major setback to Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who had, during the ED raids at the residence and other premises of the minister on July 7th and 8, stated that the Central government agency was harassing the minister who was acquitted by the Vellore court.
(The story has been published via a syndicated feed with a modified headline.)
