NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Madras High Court to give a copy of the report of preliminary equiry conducted against S P Velumani over alleged corruption in awarding of tenders in corporations during his tenure as Tamil Nadu minister for municipal administration. The court also directed the HC to dispose of the cases on merit, uninfluenced by any observation made by it.
“In our considered opinion, the HC has committed a patent error. Without considering the material before it, and by merely relying on the submissions made by the State, the HC has made sweeping observations which are prejudicial to the appellant,” the court said.
“It was the HC which had ordered that a preliminary enquiry be conducted and a report be submitted by the special investigating officer. However, once the enquiry was completed, the HC failed to even peruse the report. Rather, the HC left the decision completely in the hands of the State government. Such an approach cannot be countenanced in law. When the State changed its stand, the HC neither provided the appellant an opportunity to defend himself, nor sought a reasoned justification from the State for having turned turtle,” the apex court said.
According to Velumani’s plea, a petition in the nature of a PIL was filed before the Madras High Court in 2018 for a direction that an FIR be lodged and an investigation be conducted relating to tenders awarded by municipal corporations.
It was alleged that the petitioner, Velumani, has misused his powers and the tenders were awarded to his close aides. The HC had directed a preliminary enquiry to be conducted on the allegations, though there was no offence made against him, the Thondamuthur MLA had told the SC in his plea.
The preliminary enquiry was later converted into an FIR.
Subsequently, Velumani approached the HC by way of an application seeking a copy of the enquiry report and materials that formed part of the probe that were submitted in a sealed cover to the HC.
The HC, however, through an order dated November 11, 2021, held that Velumani is not entitled to a copy of the report and only if a chargesheet is filed based on the material used against him can he approach the court for a report copy.