Chennai: The Madras High Court has taken up suo moto revision against the acquittal of Tamil Nadu Finance Minister Thangam Tennarasu and Revenue Minister KKSSR Ramachandran in disproportionate assets cases. Ministers KKSSR Ramachandran and Thangam Thennarasu were acquitted in the asset hoarding cases by the Srivilliputhur Primary Sessions Court.
The cases were registered against the two ministers when the AIDMK government was in power in the state. In 2011, the Anti-Corruption Bureau registered a case against Minister Ramachandran, his wife Adilakshmi and one Shanmuka Murthy for amassing assets worth 44.59 lakh in excess of income from 2001 to 2010.
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The case was heard by the Madurai court and transferred to the arbitral tribunal in Virudhunagar. Later it was transferred to the Special Court for MPs and MLAs in 2019. In the report issued by the police investigating the case, it was stated that the previous investigation had wrongly alleged that there had been irregularities and that the minister and his family had not committed any irregularities.
Accordingly, the court ordered the release of three accused, including Minister Ramachandran, in July this year. Likewise, the Anti-Corruption Bureau had registered a case against Finance Minister Thangam Thennarasu and his wife Manimekalai for accumulating assets worth Rs 74.58 lakh between 2006 and 2010.
The case was transferred to a special court in 2019, which ordered the release of both in Dec.2022 due to lack of evidence. However, High Court judge justice N Anand Venkatesh, who hears the cases against MPs and MLAs, has taken up suo moto revision and investigate the cancellation of the asset accumulation cases against two ministers.
