SP Velumani, a former minister for municipal administration and senior AIADMK leader, received a huge reprieve on Wednesday (30 November 2022) when the Madras High Court quashed an FIR filed against him by the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) of Tamil Nadu over alleged irregularities in awarding tenders in the municipal corporations of Chennai and Coimbatore. However, the court denied relief in a disproportionate assets (DA) case brought against him.
The case was heard by a division bench of Madras High Court headed by Justices PN Prakash and RMT Teekaa Raman. While quashing the FIR registered against Velumani by the DVAC, Justices said, “The criminal law cannot be used to fuel a witch hunt. Be it a politician or any other citizen, the court cannot remain a mute spectator when the police power of the state is sought to be used for oblique purposes.”
“We are not, for a moment, saying that the allegations in the FIR do not make out a prima facie case for investigation,” the judge said, noting that the DVAC failed to find the link between the contractors and Velumani to justify arraying him as A1.
The court stated that it considers the filing of an FIR against Velumani to be a questionable use of police authority and an abuse of the legal process because only the concerned officials are primarily responsible for awarding contracts. The bench did, however, add that it is abundantly clear that the investigating officer is free to continue the investigation and that if he finds any new evidence to accuse Velumani, the ex-minister may be charged as an accused in the final report.
The bench noted that the CAG report’s findings on awarding contracts in municipal corporations—which were largely relied upon by the DVAC for registering the new FIR—found fault with corporation officials for recklessly accepting absurdly low rates and nothing else.
It stated that assuming Velumani is corrupt because there is a perception that all politicians are corrupt is a far-fetched thesis that simply does not appeal. We are concerned that an FIR against a politician, or any citizen, cannot be registered based on perceptions, the judges said.
The bench said, “Politicians and political parties are required for democracy to function. We may have reservations about them, but it was this clan that was responsible for defending democracy in the country and fighting the Emergency.”
The court observed that the police had danced to the tunes of the ruling party, as the then-SP of DVAC Ponni issued a report exonerating Velumani while another SP, Gangadhar, issued a report implicating him. The court, on the other hand, stated that it was not implying that he is an angel.
(with inputs from News18)
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