Stories
High Court Dismisses PIL Against Ex-AIADMK MLAs, Imposes ‘1 Lakh Fine for Publicity’
- •The Chennai High Court dismissed a PIL seeking to recover election expenses from six former AIADMK MLAs who resigned and joined the DMK.
- •Advocate S. Kasi Ramalingam filed the PIL, alleging the MLAs resigned for personal gain and to avoid disqualification, causing financial burden through by-elections.
- •The petition argued for new rules and amendments to the Representation of the People Act to make resigning MLAs pay by-election costs and face bans.
- •The court warned the petitioner of a fine, citing a similar dismissed case, but proceeded with the fine when arguments continued.
- •Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan dismissed the case with a ‘1 lakh fine, ordering payment to the Tamil Nadu Legal Services Authority.
Key Questions Answered
The Chennai High Court dismissed the petition after warning the petitioner that a similar plea filed by advocate Sudhan had already been dismissed on the 24th. Because the petitioner continued arguing despite this warning, the judges dismissed the case with a fine of one lakh rupees for being filed for publicity.
The High Court imposed a fine of one lakh rupees on the petitioner, S. Kasi Ramalingam, for filing a petition that was deemed to be for publicity. The judges ordered that this fine must be paid to the Tamil Nadu Legal Services Authority within four weeks.
The six former AIADMK MLAs who resigned and joined the DMK are Maragatham Kumara Vel, Sathyabama, Esakki Subbaiah, Jayakumar, M.R. Vijayabhaskar, and C. Vijayabhaskar. They had previously voted in favor of the government by defying the whip.
