The Supreme Court on December 8 refused to intervene in an appeal filed by the Tamil Nadu Director of Vigilance and Corruption (DVAC) against a Madras High Court decision to rule out a fresh inquiry against former Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami in connection with an alleged State Highway tender scam.
A Bench headed by Justice Bela M. Trivedi termed the High Court order “absolutely perfect”.
Senior advocate Dushyant Dave, for the DVAC, said the order was “absolutely imperfect”, and reminded that the apex court had shown zero tolerance against corruption in the past. He urged the court to issue notice.
Senior advocate C. A. Sundaram and advocate Rohini Musa, for Mr. Palaniswami, said the fresh inquiry was motivated by political rivalry. “The government has changed,” Mr. Sundaram said.
Justice Trivedi said the High Court had found a fresh inquiry in July 2023 unnecessary as the DVAC had itself, in 2018, given a clean chit to Mr. Palaniswami. The judge remarked that the DVAC had done a “somersault” with the change in government in Tamil Nadu.
Mr. Dave argued that “political rivalry” or “change of government” cannot be cited against a fresh inquiry initiated by a subsequent government into corruption allegations against the previous Chief Minister.
“He [Palaniswami] at the time was in charge of the public works, the police and he was also the Chief Minister. The DVAC report at the time was made when he was in charge. Naturally, officers under him would give him a clean chit… The High Court had no business making observations about the change in government…” Mr. Dave submitted. He said the State was entitled to investigate the allegations of corruption.
“Who is preventing you from investigating? Whatever is possible under Section 156(3), you can do. We are not preventing you,” Justice Trivedi addressed Mr. Dave.
The Madras High Court had on July 18, 2023, dismissed a petition filed by Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam organising secretary R. S. Bharathi in 2018 seeking a DVAC probe into the alleged scam.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh of the High Court had held that he did not find any infirmity in the preliminary inquiry conducted by the DVAC in 2018 when a clean chit was given to the then Chief Minister and therefore there was no necessity for the DVAC to conduct yet another preliminary inquiry just because of a change of regime in the State.
