In 2023, Justice N. Anand Venkatesh of the Madras High Court took up as many as six suo motu criminal revision petitions against the acquittal/discharge of different politicians from various criminal cases. The first case in which a verdict was delivered on February 26, 2024 turned out to be that of Rural Development Minister I. Periyasamy.
What is the charge against the Minister?
The incumbent Minister for Rural Development I. Periyasamy of Dindigul, had served as Minister for Housing during the previous Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) regime between 2006 and 2011. In March 2008, he had allotted a Tamil Nadu Housing Board’s (TNHB) ‘High Income Group’ plot under the Mogappair Eri Scheme to C. Ganesan who was the personal security officer (PSO) to then Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi. The plot was allotted under the State government’s discretionary quota by terming the beneficiary an “impeccable and honest government servant.”
