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Recusal By Madras High Court Judges In DMK-Linked Legal Cases

December 25, 2024
The Commune

After Justice AD Jagadish Chandira recused himself from hearing the bail plea of international drug trafficking kingpin and former DMK functionary Jaffer Sadiq in a money laundering case, it marks the fourth instance of a high-ranking judge stepping down from cases involving DMK leaders or former functionaries.

On 21 December 2024, Justice AD Jagadish Chandira recused himself from hearing the bail plea of Jaffer Sadiq, an accused in an international drug trafficking and money laundering case. Special Public Prosecutor for the Directorate of Enforcement (ED), N. Ramesh, objected to the plea, pointing out that it was filed while the verdict on Sadiq’s earlier bail petition, heard by the CBI special court, was still pending. He questioned the validity of filing a second bail plea before the first had been resolved.

Advocate K.M. Kalicharan, representing Sadiq, explained that the second bail petition was filed as a precautionary measure due to the impending High Court holiday from 25 December to 31 December. He clarified that the petition was filed on 19 December, after the special court rejected the initial bail plea. The counsel emphasized there was no ulterior motive in filing the new petition, arguing that it should be heard as the earlier plea had already been dismissed. He presented the special court’s order denying bail as evidence.

Justice R. Sakthivel Recused Himself Twice In DMK Minister Senthil Balaji Case

Previously, on 1 September 2023, Justice R. Sakthivel of the Madras High Court recused himself from hearing a petition filed by Tamil Nadu Minister V. Senthilbalaji. The petition sought clarification on whether his bail plea in a money laundering case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) should be heard by the Principal Sessions Court or the special court for MP/MLA cases in Chennai.

The matter was mentioned before a Division Bench comprising Justices M. Sundar and R. Sakthivel by senior counsel N.R. Elango. Following Justice Sakthivel’s recusal, the Bench directed the High Court Registry to take appropriate steps. The direction was issued in the presence of N. Ramesh, the Special Public Prosecutor for the ED.

This was not the first time Justice Sakthivel recused himself from a matter involving Minister Senthilbalaji. Earlier, on 14 June 2023, he withdrew from hearing a habeas corpus petition filed by the Minister’s wife, challenging the legality of his detention.

As a result of the latest recusal, the clarification petition was reassigned and listed for hearing before another Division Bench consisting of Justices R. Sureshkumar and K. Kumaresh Babu. The petition became necessary due to ambiguity over which court—Principal Sessions or the special MP/MLA court—should handle Senthilbalaji’s bail plea after the case was transferred for trial.

Justice S.S. Sundar Recused Himself In A Case Against DMK Minister Anitha R. Radhakrishnan

On 15 November 2023, Justice S.S. Sundar of the Madras High Court recused himself  from hearing a petition filed by Minister Anitha R. Radhakrishnan seeking to quash a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Justice Sundar directed the court registry to forward the matter to the Chief Justice for reassignment to another bench.

The petition was originally scheduled for hearing before a division bench comprising Justice S.S. Sundar and Justice Sunder Mohan. However, Justice Sundar stepped down from the case.

The origins of the case date back to 2006 when the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) filed a disproportionate assets case against Minister Radhakrishnan under the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The allegations claimed that Radhakrishnan had accumulated wealth beyond his known sources of income during his tenure as Housing Minister in the AIADMK government between 2001 and 2006.

In 2020, following the DVAC investigation, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) registered a separate case under the PMLA, 2002. The ED alleged that the investigation uncovered a distinct method employed by the accused to funnel unaccounted money into various bank accounts. The ED also sought permission from the Thoothukudi court, which is handling the DVAC case, to collaborate with the DVAC in prosecuting the disproportionate assets case. In response, Minister Radhakrishnan approached the Madras High Court to challenge the ED’s case against him.

Justice Sunder Mohan Recused Himself In A Case Against DMK Organizing Secretary R.S. Bharathi

Justice Sunder Mohan recused himself on 5 October 2023 from hearing a case concerning the maintainability of a criminal contempt petition filed by political commentator and YouTuber ‘Savukku’ Shankar against DMK organizing secretary R.S. Bharathi.

The petition was listed before a division bench of the Madras High Court, comprising Justice S.S. Sundar and Justice Sunder Mohan, to determine its maintainability. However, Justice Mohan informed the petitioner’s counsel, P. Vijendran, of his decision to step aside from the case. The bench subsequently directed the petitioner to approach another bench.

‘Savukku’ Shankar filed the criminal contempt petition against R.S. Bharathi over comments he made about Justice N. Anand Venkatesh, accusing the judge of adopting a “pick and choose” approach in initiating suo motu actions against ministers. Shankar further alleged that Bharathi’s remarks, made during a media interaction on 24 August, were intended to undermine the judiciary’s credibility and sought strict action under the Contempt of Courts Act. However, Advocate General (AG) R. Shunmugasundaram declined to grant consent for initiating criminal contempt proceedings against Bharathi, stating, “I do not see any reason to grant consent to initiate criminal contempt proceedings against him.”

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