CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has exempted Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan from appearing before a special court in Chennai in connection with a 2011 disproportionate assets case.
Justice N Sathish Kumar granted the relief after hearing a petition filed by the minister challenging the jurisdiction of the tenth additional special court for Prevention of Corruption Act cases to hear the case which was originally heard by the chief judicial magistrate court in Vellore.
He had also challenged a memo filed for dispensing with the personal appearance of the minister and sought the high court to exempt him from appearing before the special court which had issued a warrant against him recently.
The judge directed the DVAC to file a counter-affidavit to the petitions and adjourned the hearing to September 22.
The DVAC registered the case against Duraimurugan, the general secretary of the DMK, and his wife D Shanthakumari in 2011, when AIADMK was in power, for allegedly amassing Rs 1.40 crore assets disproportionate to his know sources of income during his tenure as PWD minister in the 2006-11 DMK government.
However, the CJM court in Vellore discharged them in 2017 and the DVAC filed a revision petition in the high court against the discharge. In the meantime, following a G.O. issued by the state government, the case was transferred to the Chennai court.
In April 2025, Justice P Velmurugan allowed the review petition and directed the trial court to expedite the trial.
Senior counsel P Wilson, appearing for the minister, citing a 2024 order of the government designating principal subordinate courts for hearing cases under PCA, questioned the jurisdiction of the Chennai court in hearing the case.
He also said the Chennai court has taken cognizance of the matter without jurisdiction.