The Madras High Court on Friday ordered issuing notice to DMK Minister I Periyasamy on a criminal revision case that it initiated, following his discharge from a corruption case by a trial court in March this year. So far, the court has taken up on its own, similar cases against DMK ministers K Ponmudy, Thangam Thennarasu and KKSSR Ramachandran. It has also initiated revision cases against expelled AIADMK leader and former Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and senior party functionary and ex-minister B Valarmathi.
Invoking his powers under section 397 of Cr.PC, Justice N Anand Venkatesh initiated on his own (suo motu) the criminal revision case against Periyasamy and also ordered issuing notice to the State government, returnable by 12 October. Periyasamy is state Minister for Rural Development. The case of the prosecution was that Periyasamy had allegedly obtained pecuniary advantage by allotting Tamil Nadu Housing Board land here under the “Impeccable Honest Government Servant quota” to one Ganesan when the Minister held the Housing portfolio in 2008. Narrating the facts and the sequence of events, the judge said a petition was filed on 21 February 2023.
At the next hearing, the Special Public Prosecutor filed his counter and on the third hearing, orders were reserved. On 17 March, the Special Court allowed the petition and discharged Periyasamy from the case on the sole ground that the sanction given by the Speaker was invalid as the competent authority was the Governor and not the Speaker. A case which had hitherto progressed at a rate “worse than that of a snail”, suddenly progressed and finished at lightning speed.