HC transfers Velumani’s pleas to bench hearing MP/MLAs cases

CHENNAI: The first division bench of Madras High Court on Tuesday transferred the cases filed by former Local Administration minister SP Velumani to a division bench that has the roaster to hear the criminal cases against the MLAs and the MPs.

Velumani approached the court to quash two FIRs filed by the DVAC for awarding tenders of Chennai and Coimbatore corporations to companies owned by his relatives and friends from 2014 to 2021.

Heading the first bench along with Justice Sunder Mohan, Acting Chief Justice M Duraiswamy passed the orders after Public Prosecutor Hasan Mohammed Jinnah expressed urgency to argue in the matter.

The judges held that since one of us (Justice M Duraiswamy, ACJ) is retiring on Wednesday (September 21) on attaining the age of superannuation, due to paucity of time, this Bench is not in a position to take up the matter immediately.

“Since the matter is pertaining to a sitting MLA of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, post all the matters before a Division Bench presided over by Justice PN Prakash, who is having roster to hear criminal cases involving the sitting or former MPs and MLAs,” the ACJ said in the order.

The bench insisted the counsels of the petitioners and law officers of the state to make a mention before the said division bench for taking up the matter early.

The ACJ further noted that the interim order restraining the DVAC from filing the final inquiry report shall continue till the matter is listed before the division bench concerned.