The year 2023 turned out to be highly eventful for the Madras High Court.
It began with a writ of quo warranto questioning the authority under which Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi was holding his office while simultaneously serving as the chairman of the board of governors of Auroville Foundation in Puducherry.
On January 5, 2023, the then Acting Chief Justice (ACJ) T. Raja and Justice D. Bharatha Chakravarthy held the writ petition, filed by M. Kannadasan of Thanthai Periyar Dravidar Kazhagam, to be not maintainable in view of the immunity enjoyed by the Governor, from legal proceedings, under Article 361 of the Constitution.
Gutkha ban
In the same month, Justices R. Subramanian and K. Kumaresh Babu set aside a 2018 notification issued by the Food Safety Commissioner (FSC) banning the manufacture, storage, transport, distribution or sale of gutkha, pan masala and other chewable food products containing tobacco / nicotine as ingredients.
The Bench held that the ban could be imposed only for a temporary period which could extend up to a maximum of one year and not beyond that.
Justice L. Victoria Gowri
In February 2023, the elevation of Justice L. Victoria Gowri to the Bench turned controversial with a group of lawyers accusing her of having delivered “hate speeches” when she was a lawyer.
In a nail-biting finish to the controversy on February 7, 2023, the ACJ administered the oath of office to her, even as the Supreme Court was simultaneously hearing a case against her elevation. The case was dismissed, on merits, minutes after she assumed office as an additional judge of the High Court for a period of two years.
O. Panneerselvam expulsion case
A month later, former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam and his supporters P.H. Manoj Pandian, R. Vaithilingam and J.C.D. Prabhakar moved the Madras High Court challenging the AIADMK party’s July 11, 2022 general council resolutions through which they were expelled from primary membership for alleged anti-party activities.
The High Court denied interim relief. So, they took the matter on an appeal to the Supreme Court.
Fishers on Loop Road
In April 2023, the Madras High Court and the fishermen families on the Loop Road off Marina beach in Chennai found themselves at loggerheads after the court insisted on evicting the fish stalls from the road.
The fishermen, residing on tenements adjacent to the Loop Road, blocked the entire road used by the judges, and others, on a daily basis to commute between their bungalows on Greenways Road and the High Court. A truce ensued only after the court permitted the Chennai Corporation to regulate the fish sellers instead of evicting them.
Special liquor licence
On April 26, 2023, a Bench of Justices S. Vaidyanathan and R. Kalaimathi stayed the operation of a Government Order which introduced a special licence regime to serve liquor to guests at international and national events conducted in stadia, conference halls and convention centres. The stay continues to be in force till date.
Subsequently, on May 26, 2023 the Centre notified the appointment of incumbent Chief Justice Sanjay V. Gangapurwala. He assumed office on June 1, 2023 after the High Court had been functioning under ACJs for more than eight months since the retirement of former CJ Munishwar Nath Bhandari on September 12, 2022.
Gokulraj murder case
On June 2, 2023, Justices M.S. Ramesh and N. Anand Venkatesh confirmed the life sentence (till death without any remission) imposed on eight convicts including S. Yuvaraj, 43, a caste outfit leader, for beheading Scheduled Caste youth V. Gokulraj in 2015 after suspecting him to be in love with a Caste Hindu college student.
“This is a case which brings out the dark side of human behaviour. It focuses our attention to the ugly facets of our society: the caste system, bigotry, inhuman treatment of persons belonging to the marginalised section, et al. Cases such as this are textbook examples of how the criminal justice system can be easily manipulated and won over by witnesses who suborn at the drop of a hat,” the judges wrote.
Senthilbalaji split verdict
Thereafter, on June 15, 2023, a Division Bench of Justices J. Nisha Banu and D. Bharatha Chakravarthy ordered the transfer of Minister V. Senthilbalaji, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case, from a government hospital in Chennai to a private hospital of his choice for undergoing a bypass surgery.
However, on July 4, 2023, the two judges in the Bench delivered a split verdict in a habeas corpus petition filed by the Minister’s wife. While Justice Banu declared his detention to be illegal, Justice Chakravarthy differed. The issue was referred to Justice C.V. Karthikeyan, the third judge, who concurred with the view taken by Justice Chakravarthy on July 14, 2023.
In the meantime, dealing with two other important cases, Justice Venkatesh ruled that pedigree based on caste would have no role to play in appointment of temple priests and Justice S.S. Sundar declared the 2019 election of Theni Member of Parliament P. Ravindranath, son of former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, null and void. The verdicts were delivered on June 26, 2023 and July 6, 2023 respectively.
On July 21, 2023, disposing of yet another case, Justice Venkatesh famously wrote that if temple festivals become a reason to perpetuate violence, it would be better to close down such temples.
Suo Motu revision against T.N. Ministers
Beginning from August 10, 2023 Justice Venkatesh took up six suo motu revision petitions against the acquittal/ discharge of sitting as well as former Ministers from different criminal cases. The suo motu action taken by the High Court turned out to be the most talked about topic in the State.
Thereafter, in a judgement welcomed by many, Justice S.M. Subramaniam on August 23, 2023 directed the State government to provide reservations for transgender persons in local body polls. The judge opined that such a move would help in integrating them with the mainstream society.
Minister without a portfolio
On September 5, 2023, the first Division Bench comprising the Chief Justice and Justice Chakravarthy delivered its verdict on a batch of cases filed against continuation of arrested Minister Senthilbalaji in the Cabinet.
“A Minister without portfolio is a constitutional travesty,” the judges wrote. They also said that the continuation of a person in the Cabinet, despite him being in judicial custody, “does not augur well with the principles of constitutional ethos on goodness, good governance and purity in administration.”
The Bench expected the Chief Minister to take a call on the issue purely on concerns over Constitutional and public morality though there was no legal bar for a person in judicial custody to continue as a Minister.
Vachathi verdict
On September 29, 2023, Justice P. Velmurugan confirmed the conviction and sentences imposed on a host of government officials for the 1992 Vachathi brutality and also ordered compensation to the tribes who were subjected to spine chilling violence after suspecting them to be sandalwood smugglers. The verdict was welcomed by activists who had been fighting for justice for long.
In October 2023, Justice G. Jayachandran heard an anticipatory bail petition filed by AIADMK former MLA R. Kumaraguru in a case booked against him for having made derogatory remarks against Chief Minister M.K. Stalin and Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin in a public meeting at Ulundurpet.
The judge passed an unusual order, in the case, asking the petitioner if he would be willing to conduct another public meet at the same venue to seek apology. The former MLA did so and therefore, the judge recommended withdrawal of prosecution against him. The police accepted the recommendation and dropped further action.
Sanatana Dharma row
On October 6, 2023, three writ of quo warranto petitions were filed against Sports Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments Minister P.K. Sekarbabu and the Nilgiris Member of Parliament A. Raja in connection with the Sanatana Dharma row.
Justice Anita Sumanth heard marathon arguments in those cases and reserved her judgement on December 21, 2023. The verdict reserved just a day before the commencement of the Christmas vacation ended up being the last significant event of the year.
Since it took three months for the hearing on the quo warranto petitions to come to a close, a few other significant events unfolded in the High Court in the meantime. In October 2023, Justice N. Seshasayee declared as illegal the reluctance among many hospitals to encourage non-relatives as organ donors and in the same month, Justice Jayachandran refused to grant bail to Minister Senthilbalaji on health grounds.
Ponmudy convicted
Justice Jayachandran also convicted Minister K. Ponmudy and his wife P. Visalakshi in a disproportionate assets case and sentenced them to three years of simple imprisonment in December 2023. The judge, however, granted 30 days’ time to surrender before the trial court and said, they could go on appeal to the Supreme Court in the meantime.
On November 9, 2023, a Bench comprising Chief Justice Gangapurwala and Justice P.D. Audikesavalu ruled that a State law against online gambling would apply only to games of chance and not to games of skill such as rummy and poker. The State government’s contention that gamers were committing suicide due to their addiction to online games did not cut ice with the judges.
On December 5, 2023, a Division Bench of Justices R. Subramanian and N. Senthilkumar rejected a claim over the AIADMK general secretary’s post by V.K. Sasikala who was a close aide of former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. Interestingly, both Mr. Panneerselvam as well as incumbent AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami had opposed the case filed by her.
Though the High Court heard many other significant cases too in 2023, some of them remain inconclusive and will spill over to 2024.
