Madras High Court judges recused themselves Today (Mar 25) from the TASMAC raids case after criticizing ED’s conduct. The case involves alleged Rs 1,000 crore liquor scam and political tensions in Tamil Nadu.
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CHENNAI: In a major update from Tamil Nadu, two judges from the Madras High Court have decided not to continue hearing the case related to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raids on TASMAC (Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation).
The Bench included Justice MS Ramesh and Justice N Senthilkumar.
They informed on Tuesday morning that they are recusing, or stepping away, from the case.
They made the announcement before the day’s listed cases began.
They said clearly:
“That TASMAC matter, we are recusing ourselves, we are not taking. We have some reasons. Actually, we wanted it tomorrow, but we already signed the order (posting it today). Thereafter, we found we cannot take this matter. It will go before alternate Bench.”
This decision came after the Court had earlier shown strong disapproval of how ED officials carried out the raids. On March 20, the judges expressed concern over how the raids were done by ED at the TASMAC offices. TASMAC is the government agency that controls the sale and distribution of alcohol in Tamil Nadu.
During the earlier hearing, the Court was unhappy that ED officials did not properly explain the reason for the raid to TASMAC staff and even allegedly stopped the employees from moving freely. This led the judges to question the conduct of the ED officers.
The Court asked the ED to give a proper reply to the petitions filed by TASMAC and the Tamil Nadu State Government. In the meantime, the Court also gave an oral direction to ED: not to take any strict or forceful action against TASMAC staff until further orders.
But on March 25, the judges informed the lawyers that they would no longer hear this matter. So now, a new Bench of judges will take up the case and continue the proceedings.
The case is related to ED raids that happened at TASMAC offices between March 6 and March 8. These raids were carried out in different places, including TASMAC’s headquarters in Chennai and several distilleries and bottling plants across Tamil Nadu.
TASMAC has argued in court that ED’s actions were too harsh and went beyond their legal power. They said ED officers forcefully entered their premises and violated employee rights, even taking away their mobile phones without proper reason.
The ED has accused TASMAC and its associated distilleries of financial crimes worth more than ₹1,000 crore. According to ED, there were multiple issues:
- Tenders were manipulated
- Unaccounted cash was being handled
- Retail shops were charging more than the legal MRP
Specifically, ED said that TASMAC liquor shops were charging Rs 10 to Rs 30 extra per liquor bottle, which is above the fixed retail price. This, they claim, was a planned and organised effort to make illegal profits.
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After these raids, the ED claimed they found strong proof of corruption and collusion between distilleries and TASMAC officers. They say that this setup allowed state money to be misused and that big bribes were given to TASMAC staff so that certain distilleries could get supply orders.
The ED also said that there were serious problems in how transport and bar licenses were given, hinting at corruption in every level of the supply chain.
This issue has turned political as well. The ruling party in Tamil Nadu, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), has said that ED is being misused by the Central Government for political reasons. On the other hand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) denied this, saying that the corruption should be thoroughly checked and those responsible must be punished.
TASMAC then filed a case in the Madras High Court, asking for protection against ED’s “harassment” during their investigation. The Tamil Nadu Government also filed a case, saying that ED should not have entered the TASMAC premises without first getting permission from the State Government.
During the March 20 hearing, the State’s lawyers argued that the way ED carried out the raids went against federal values, as law and order is a State subject in India.
The Court also seemed shocked by the claim that ED “took control” of TASMAC offices and made employees stay for long hours.
The TASMAC officials said in court that some women employees were sent home only at 1 AM and then asked to return again by 8 or 9 AM.
The judges then questioned ED directly and asked:
“Is it not an alarming situation? We can understand if you have specific input. But can you keep the entire office under your control for hours together?”
ED’s lawyer, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) AR L Sundaresan, strongly rejected these claims. He told the Court:
“No one was kept captive, everyone was allowed to go and come back.”
So now, as the original judges have stepped away from the case, the matter will be taken up by a different Bench in the Madras High Court in the coming days.
The case will continue to be closely watched because it involves serious questions about federal rights, employee treatment, and alleged corruption at high levels in the state’s liquor distribution network.
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