Madras HC to suo moto review acquittal of TN Minister Ponmudi, wife

Chennai, Aug 10 (IANS) A single bench of the Madras High Court has decided to suo moto review a case related to the acquittal of Tamil Nadu Higher Education Minister K. Ponmudi and his wife in a disproportionate assets case by a Vellore court on June 28.

The case has been listed as item no 124.

Justice Anand Venkatesh has invoked Section 397 of CrPc and decided to hear the case on Thursday.

The judge said that the court felt some injustice had been done and hence the suo moto revision of the Vellore court order.

Section 397 of CrPc empowers the high court or judge to call for and examine the record of any proceeding before any subordinate criminal court within its jurisdiction.

The case against Ponmudi and his wife K. Visalakshi was registered in 2002 when the AIADMK returned to power stating that he had Rs 1.4 crore disproportionate to the known sources of his income.

The prosecution had charged Ponmudi with amassing illegal assets when he was minister in the DMK government between 1996 and 2001.

The Vellore magistrate court judge Vasanthasheela had on June 28 acquitted the Minister and his wife stating that the prosecution had failed to furnish sufficient and legally acceptable evidence against the accused.

The single bench of the Madras High Court will test the correctness of the judgment of the Vellore court.

It may be noted that the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had questioned the minister on July 17 and 18 and had frozen his fixed deposit of Rs 41.9 crore.