Today, On 20th September, The Supreme Court permitted the Tamil Nadu police to summon BJP leader Kesava Vinayagam in connection with the seizure of around Rs. 4 crore in cash from three passengers on a train bound for Tirunelveli in April. The cash was suspected to be intended for use by a BJP candidate in the Lok Sabha elections. The investigation aims to uncover the source and intended purpose of the seized money.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday set-aside Madras High Court directive that prevented the Tamil Nadu Crime Branch from summoning BJP leader Kesava Vinayagam without prior court approval in a cash seizure case.
A bench comprising Justices Surya Kant and Ujjal Bhuyan instructed the investigating agency to provide the Tamil Nadu politician with at least a one-week advance notice for his appearance.
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The Court stated,
“With a view to balance the rights of the investigating agency and the respondent, the last line of the impugned order of the High Court is set aside.”
In April of this year, approximately Rs. 4 crore in cash seized from three passengers on a train bound for Tirunelveli. The money suspected to be linked to a BJP candidate running in the Lok Sabha election.
The Madras High Court , in a June 6 order, instructed the Investigating Officer not to summon BJP leader Kesava Vinayagam unless new evidence warranted his presence. It further mandated that if such evidence emerged, the state would need to “obtain permission by presenting the material before this Court” before summoning him.
The Tamil Nadu government challenged these directives in the Supreme Court, which, in July, sought a response from Vinayagam. In the latest hearing, Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, along with advocates Sabarish Subramanian and Aprajita Jamwal, represented the state government, while Senior Advocate K. Parameshwar appeared for Vinayagam.
Sibal argued that there was no risk of arrest or coercive measures in a typical investigation of this nature, while Parameshwar contended that the case was politically motivated.
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The Supreme Court, however, disagreed with the conditions imposed by the High Court, stating,
“We will say one week notice for summons. You can challenge the notice.”
Consequently, the Court set aside the High Court’s restrictions on issuing summons to Vinayagam, clarifying that he is free to challenge the summons legally if needed.