MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of Madras High Court on Thursday refused to quash summons issued to Dhayanidhi Alagiri, son of former Union Minister MK Alagiri, in a money laundering case involving a private granite company in which Dhayanidhi is a director.
The Additional District Judge II for CBI cases, Madurai had issued the summons in November last year in the case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in 2013. Dhayanidhi filed a petition before the High Court challenging the summons, stating that the Special Court for Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) cases should not have taken cognizance of ED’s complaint against him without registration of an FIR.
Moreover, when the adjudicating authority concerned had already concluded that his properties, which were provisionally attached by ED in connection with the complaint in 2019, are not ‘proceeds of crime’, the ED cannot continue to prosecute him, Dhayanidhi alleged.
But a Division Bench of Justices S Vaidyanathan and G Jayachandran dismissed the petition on Thursday holding that the adjudicatory authority’s finding does not mean that Dhayanidhi has been given a clean chit and does not stand in the way of prosecuting him.
‘Only plaint necessary’
The judges referred to Sections 44 and 45 of Money Laundering Act, which indicate that a written complaint by an authorised officer can be taken cognizance by a judge