CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Thursday directed the 21 officers of the revenue and the police departments, including IAS and IPS officers, to file their counter-affidavit in the Thoothukudi police firing case by June 7.
A division bench of Justices SS Sundar and N Senthilkumar issued the direction when a petition filed by executive director of People’s Watch Henri Tiphagne regarding the 2018 firing on anti-Sterlite protesters that killed 13 persons.
The bench also expressed displeasure over the failure of the state in serving notice to the impleaded officers – then district collector of Thoothukudi N Venkatesh, three revenue officers and 17 police officers including then IG for South Zone Shailesh Kumar Yadav, DIG Kapil Kumar C Saratkar and SP Mahendran.
“You (state) are required to serve the notices but haven’t served them to all the officers. Some notices have returned,” the bench said.
Setting the deadline of June 7, the bench said, “Every one of the newly impleaded respondents needs to file the counter-affidavit. We are giving time to all.” It adjourned the case to June 18, 2024 for further hearing.
Tiphagne filed the petition in the high court challenging the order of the National Human Rights Commission closing its suo motu investigation into the firing abruptly. He also sought the rights body to reopen the probe.
He told the bench on Thursday he was not served a copy of the updated details of the disciplinary proceedings against the impleaded officers.