MADURAI: Taking serious note of an incident where a seized tractor went missing from the custody of revenue officials in Thoothukudi district, the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court recently directed the state home department to issue necessary direction to all district administrations to allot a dedicated space to park all seized vehicles. The court also called for necessary protective measures such as CCTVs and guards to man the lots.
Hearing a petition filed by a man seeking that his vehicle be released, Justice B Pugalendhi said, “It is a shame on the part of the district administration that a vehicle, which was seized and was in the custody of the department, is missing.” He also noted that as of date, neither the police nor the revenue department has a mechanism to safeguard the vehicles.
The seized vehicles are produced before the court, and the court, due to a lack of space, returns the vehicles to the custody of the police, he added.
The judge, suo motu, impleaded the state home secretary and issued the directives. According to the order, the petitioner’s vehicle was seized in February 2013 by the assistant director of the geology and mining wing in Thoothukudi on charges that rough stones were being transported without a valid permit.
Although the petitioner claimed to be the owner of the vehicle, documents were not provided to prove his ownership. Moreover, the petitioner moved the court more than six months after the incident, the judge pointed out.
Holding that the petitioner did not approach the court with clean hands, the judge dismissed the plea, but noted that the issue cannot be sidelined and the conduct of the authorities has to be viewed seriously.