The Madras High Court, on Friday, 31 January 2025, declined to exempt Tamil Nadu Home Secretary Dheeraj Kumar from personal appearance, after summoning him to address multiple instances of police failing to register FIRs promptly, delaying investigations, and not submitting final reports to jurisdictional magistrates.
Justice P. Velmurugan ordered that the Home Secretary must either appear before the court by 4:30 PM or obtain a stay from the Supreme Court within that time frame. If neither condition was met, the judge warned that an arrest warrant would be issued. The court emphasized that the summons was issued to highlight the difficulties faced by the underprivileged in seeking justice, rather than the concerns of those “sitting in ivory towers.”
Explaining the decision to summon the official, Justice Velmurugan stated in his order: “This court does not know as to whether the concerned Secretary to Government is aware of the illegal practices prevailing in the police department, which are causing much inconvenience to the poor litigant/public and hence, this court is directing the Home Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu, to appear before this court on January 31, 2025.”
The order stemmed from a petition filed by P. Sundar, a 53-year-old building materials dealer from Virugambakkam, Chennai. Sundar stated that he had been leasing a vacant plot as a storage space for the past 12 years. In 2007, he offered to buy the land for ₹25 lakh and claimed to have paid ₹12.5 lakh as an advance. However, he alleged that the landlord later reneged on the agreement and instead demanded ₹60 lakh before executing the sale deed.
Following a legal dispute, Sundar filed a civil suit in 2013 and obtained an interim injunction preventing his eviction. In 2015, he reported that a group of individuals trespassed into his godown and vandalized property. Although an FIR was registered at the time, he complained that the Virugambakkam police had yet to complete the investigation or submit a final report after nine years.
The prosecution countered this claim, stating that the case was closed in 2015 but admitted that the negative final report had not been submitted to the relevant judicial magistrate. Justice Velmurugan expressed displeasure over this and noted that such lapses were not isolated incidents.
Highlighting a pattern of delays, he remarked that the High Court regularly receives petitions urging police to register FIRs or conclude investigations and file reports—actions that should be carried out as a matter of statutory duty without requiring court intervention.
The judge further lamented that even in cases where courts issue clear directives, law enforcement officials fail to comply. He pointed out that only those with financial means could afford to seek legal remedies, while the underprivileged struggled to obtain justice.
“The complainants/poor litigants, who are unable to approach the court due to poor financial situation/poverty, are struggling to get justice. In some of the cases, even after directions of the court also, the police officers are not following the procedures and the directions of the court. One way or the other, some of the police officials are functioning arbitrarily and not for the public,“ Justice Velmurugan observed.
(With inputs from The Hindu)
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