The Madras High Court on Thursday quashed two First Information Reports (FIRs) registered against former Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam, now an MLA representing Bodinayakanur, and his son P. Ravindranath for allegedly furnishing false information about their assets and income in the election affidavits filed in 2021 and 2019 respectively.
Justice N. Anand Venkatesh quashed the FIRs registered by the Theni District Crime Branch (DCB) police last year after holding that a judicial magistrate, designated as a special court for hearing cases against the legislators, had issued an “illegal” direction for registration of the cases under Section 125A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
The judge agreed with counsel for the two quash petitioners that the offence under Section 125A was a non-cognisable offence and hence, the Magistrate ought not to have directed the DCB to register the FIRs without even insisting upon the complainant, P. Milany who had also filed election petitions in the High Court, filing an affidavit.
Justice Venkatesh pointed out that the Supreme Court had on more than one occasion made it clear that a direction to the police, under Section 156(3) of the Code of Criminal Procedure, to register an FIR could not be issued unless the complainant had filed an affidavit listing the charges levelled by him against the proposed accused.
Earlier, Additional Public Prosecutor E. Raj Thilak told the judge that the FIR against Mr. Ravindranath had been registered for having allegedly furnished false information when he contested from the Theni Lok Sabha constituency in 2019 and that the High Court had recently declared his election null and void.
However, the judge said the declaration made in an election petition would have no bearing on the criminal proceedings and therefore, he was inclined to quash both FIRs.
