On Monday, Justice Anand Venkatesh set aside a special court’s discharge order and instructed Periyasamy to proceed to trial.
Chennai: On Monday, the Madras High Court recently set-aside a decision by a special court, reviving the case against Tamil Nadu’s Minister I Periyasamy concerning allegations of unauthorized land distribution. The court directed that Periyasamy, who holds the position of Rural Development Minister in the DMK administration.
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Justice Anand Venkatesh set aside the order following the previous exoneration of Periyasamy. The case centers around accusations that Periyasamy, during his tenure as Housing Minister in the DMK government, improperly allocated a plot from the Tamil Nadu Housing Board (TNHB) to the personal security officer of the late Chief Minister M Karunanidhi.
These allegations emerged following the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption’s (DVAC) investigation, initiated after the AIADMK’s ascent to power in 2011. The controversy involves a prime piece of real estate in Chennai, designated for high-income individuals, which was allocated to Karunanidhi’s personal security officer, Ganesan, in March 2008.
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Despite Periyasamy’s efforts to quash the legal proceedings—arguing in 2016 that only the Governor, not the legislative assembly speaker, had the authority to sanction his prosecution—the judiciary has persistently refuted his claims. Both the High Court and the Supreme Court upheld the speaker’s sanction in 2022.
However, Periyasamy sought to dismiss the charges again in February 2023, challenging the validity of the sanction. The special court initially discharged Periyasamy in March 2023, but this decision has been nullified by the recent High Court ruling.
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