Chennai: Madras high court on Monday reserved orders on a review petition filed by former DMK minister K N Nehru challenging the court’s earlier order directing the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) to register a case over suspected irregularities in the appointment of personnel in the municipal administration department.The first bench of Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan heard the case. The case pertains to an Enforcement Directorate (ED) communication to the Tamil Nadu DGP alleging that ₹634 crore had been collected as bribes in connection with the appointment of 2,538 personnel, including assistant engineers and junior engineers, during the previous DMK regime. ED had sought registration of a case based on the allegations.High court had, in Feb, directed the DVAC to register a case based on the ED’s communication while hearing a petition filed by AIADMK MP I S Inbadurai. Seeking review of the order, Nehru contended that the direction had been issued without hearing his submissions.Appearing for the state, advocate-general Vijay Narayan submitted that the ED had sent its communication along with supporting material, but the previous DMK govt had not taken action and had instead protected Nehru.He also argued that Nehru had been given notice in Inbadurai’s petition and an opportunity to respond, but had not availed himself of it. The judgment in the case was reserved and pronounced 16 days later, and Nehru could not subsequently claim that he had not been given an opportunity to present his case, he submitted.Senior counsel Siddharth Luthra and P H Arvindh Pandian, appearing for Nehru, argued that the order directing registration of the case had been passed without hearing him, thereby affecting his rights. They also contended that the present govt could not withdraw the review petition filed during the previous regime and had no such power.After hearing both sides, the bench reserved orders on Nehru’s review petition. The court also extended its interim order restraining further proceedings in the case registered against Nehru until orders are passed on the review petition.
