CHENNAI: The first bench of the Madras High Court has agreed to treat the assault on an advocate in Thattarmadam in Thoothukudi district as a suo-motu PIL petition and initiate appropriate proceedings against a cop.
When the bench of Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice Abdul Quddhose began the proceedings on Monday morning, Madras High Court Advocates Association president G Mohanakrishnan took up the issue relating to the assault on advocate Periyasamy by Sundaram, an SI attached to the Thattarmadam police station, on March 4 last.
According to Mohanakrishnan, Periyasamy, accompanied by his client Gurunath Suresh, went to the Thattarmadam police station in connection with registration of a criminal complaint against a third party. The incident relates to trespassing into the agricultural land of Suresh by another person and damaging the crops on March 4 last.
After making the lawyer and his client run from pillar to post, the SI finally directed them to meet him in the evening.Accordingly, when the duo met him, they were told to sign a letter, which they refused to do so. The SI abused and attacked them and kept them in illegal custody for over five hours. He also took a selfie with the cell phone of the advocate and advised him to frame and hang it on the wall of his house so that it would teach him and others a lesson.
When Mohanakrishnan produced the photo, the CJ observed that these types of things cannot be tolerated. She would initiate suo-moto proceedings on the incident, she added.