Criminal Original Petition No.17492 of 2023 and Contempt Petition No.2493 of 2022 SURESH KUMAR, J.AND K.KUMARESH BABU, J. (Order of the Court was made by R.SURESH KUMAR, J.) The Case Diary of the case ie., F.I.R.No.8 of 2018 on the file of the District Crime Branch, Namakkal had been produced before this Court yesterday. We have gone through the same and we find the following shocking revelations.
Criminal Original Petition No.17492 of 2023 and Contempt Petition No.2493 of 2022
- SURESH KUMAR, J.AND K.KUMARESH BABU, J.
(Order of the Court was made by R.SURESH KUMAR, J.)
The Case Diary of the case ie., F.I.R.No.8 of 2018 on the file of the District Crime Branch, Namakkal had been produced before this Court yesterday. We have gone through the same and we find the following shocking revelations.
(a)A confession statement of A4 in the case has been recorded, where, among other things, he seems to have stated the following:
“ehd; mth;fSf;F brhj;Jf;fis ghJfhj;J juntz;o brd;id cah;ePjpkd;wj;jpy; jilahiz bgw;W bfhLj;J jLj;Jtplyhk; vd;w Kaw;rpapy; ,w’;fpndd;/ Mdhy; ehd; epidj;jg;go jilahiz bgwKoatpy;iy/ mjdhy; ehd; fle;j khh;r; khjk; gy ngh;fsplk; Mnyhridfs; nfl;nld;/ Kotpy; me;jpa{iu nrh;e;j vdJ ez;gh; mKy;uh$; vd;gth; Twpa nahridfs; go nfhh;l;oy; bgwgg;Lk; jilahizfspd; efy;fis ghh;j;J mij nghynt bgah; njjp kw;Wk; ,l’;fis khw;wp ePjpkd;w jilahiz nghynt xU bts;isj; jhspy; buo gz;zp bfhLj;J tPl;il fhyp bra;tij jLj;Jtplyhk; vd Kot[ bra;J KUfhde;jk;.
Re;juk;. m’;fKj;J Mfpnahh;fis nfl;L mth;fSk; rhpbad;W brhy;ynt giHa nfhh;l; Mh;lh; efy;fis vLj;Jf; bfhz;L gthdpapy; ,a’;fp tUk; o$pl;ly; bel; vd;w filapy; bfhLj;J ilg; bra;J jur; brhd;ndd;/”
(b)The investigating officer has subsequently filed a request before the concerned Magistrate court seeking permission to add some more persons as accused in the case including Amalraj.
(c) The said Amalraj had filed anticipatory bail application in Crl.O.P.No.23298 of 2018, where he claimed that he is the family friend of one of the accused.
(d)Subsequently, the said Criminal O.P. (for anticipatory bail) was dismissed on merits by a learned Judge of this Court by order dated 29.10.2018, where the learned Judge has observed that, taking note of the gravity of the offence committed by the
petitioner ie., Amalraj, the Court is not inclined to grant anticipatory bail to the petitioner.
- When the High Court has observed in its order as stated supra that the said Amalraj has allegedly committed a grave offence and that is why his anticipatory bail petition was dismissed, the investigating officer immediately ought to have taken effective steps to secure the said Amalraj and after due investigation, his role in the crime should have been unearthed.
- However, it is unfortunate that the investigating officer has not taken any steps to even touch the said Amalraj. Neither he has been enquired nor has been declared as an absconding accused and ultimately the charge sheet has been filed without even implicating the said Amalraj as an accused and without revealing, after proper investigation, the involvement and role of the said Amalraj in the crime.
- This failure on the part of the two investigating officers who completed the investigation, cannot be simply brushed aside as a mere failure in investigation. Beyond which, we feel that, these investigating officers have purposely, for obvious reasons or reasons best known to them, with the connivance of somebody, to save somebody or to avoid implicating one of the main accused in the crime, which in fact has been committed by them against the High Court, have completed the investigation and filed the charge sheet.
- The next aspect is, in the Criminal O.P.No.17492 of 2023 filed by A1 Muruganantham and A5 Thangamani, it has been revealed that the forged order copy was given by Shanmugam @ Lakshminarayanan through one Meiyappan. Who is the said Meiyappan has not been investigated by the prosecution. Also, it has further been revealed that A1 Muruganantham had contacted A4 Shanmugam through his mobile number 956637791 on 09.09.2018, where he claimed to have been informed by the said Shanmugam that one
Thangapandian, Advocate had given him the order copy (forged order copy). It was further revealed by the said Muruganantham in the petition that, this conversation between him and Shanmugam got recorded automatically in the Samsung android phone which was with him at that time and when he was arrested by the investigating officer Balakrishnan, the copy of the conversation recorded in the mobile phone was also sent through Whatsapp application to the investigating officer Balakrishnan.
- If these are all the averments which have been made by one of the accused in the case, what steps the investigating officers had taken to investigate in that line to find out who was that Meiyappan, as through him only the order copy was claimed to have been given by Shanmugam to the other accused and also who was that advocate Thangapandian also seems to have not been investigated.
- In this context, it is to be noted that, the alleged conversation taken place between A4 Shanmugam and A1 Muruganantham is claimed to have been forwarded through Whatsapp application to the mobile of the investigating officer Balakrishnan. If so, what action he had taken pursuant to the said conversation and whether any investigation in that line has been undertaken by the investigating officer has not been revealed.
- This cannot be treated as a mere lapse on the part of the investigating officers.
- Thirdly, the forged order copy was typed in a computer centre, the person who typed the order, according to the prosecution is an innocent as without knowing the repercussion simply text was typed according to the prosecution. If that being so, when the print out is taken it is not a mere text taken out in a white paper, but it is in the name of the High Court with the signatures of the officers of the Registry of this Court and with all those things, it cannot be said that it was merely typed innocently by a typist of a computer centre. Therefore, in this context, a full fledged investigation must have been undertaken by the investigating officers, where also they miserably failed.
- That apart, the printer from which the order copy has been taken print out ought to have been referred to the forensic science laboratory for verification and certification, which alone will be helpful to the prosecution at the time of trial, but that effort has also not been taken by the investigating officers.
- Therefore, this chain of lapses clearly establish that these investigating officers from the beginning had been conducting the investigation with an ulterior motive to save somebody for the reasons best known to them.
- Knowing well that one person viz., Amalraj, who filed anticipatory bail petition before this Court, has been considered to be an accused and he is allegedly involved in the grave crime as per the observation of the learned Judge of this Court, despite that the said person has not been enquired and no investigation to that direction had taken place.
- Therefore, this kind of serious lapses cannot only be considered as mere lapses, but these lapses had occurred as per the mindset of the investigating officers purposely to avoid implicating some more accused in this case.
- This attitude on the part of the investigating officers is not well for the Tamil Nadu Police Force. Therefore, in order to reveal or unearth the truth as to why these investigating officers have given this lenient rope throughout investigation without properly investigating the issue even after getting considerable input and clue from various sources have to be found out.
- Therefore, we feel that the Director General of Police (D.G.P), Tamil Nadu Police Force shall take immediate action to form a special team to investigate not only the crime in thorough manner to bring all the culprits into book, but also the utter failure on the part of the two investigating officers who completed the investigation as a half baked investigation and in this process, the intention of the investigating officers also shall be found out.
- Apart from the investigation to be made by the special investigation team, if the competent authority of the Tamil Nadu Police Force finds that prima facie case is made out against these two investigating officers, departmental action shall be initiated against them. That possibility also shall be explored and be acted upon.
- For the purpose of the afore stated investigation by a special team, Superintendent of Police level officer shall be nominated, who shall head the team consisting of other police personnel. The special team shall investigate by way of re-investigation of the entire gamut of the issue and file an interim report within a period of four weeks from the date of receipt of a copy of this order.
- In view of the aforesaid directions, the charge sheet pending in C.C.No.537 of 2020 on the file of the learned Judicial Magistrate,
Kumarapalayam, Namakkal District is hereby stayed. The original Case Diary File shall be put in a sealed cover and be handed over to the Director General of Police through the Additional Public Prosecutor along with a copy of this order.
- Post this matter on 10.2023 along with the Contempt Petition. The contemnors M.Muruganantham, Thangamani and Shanmugam are present today. Their presence is noted. They shall remain present during the next date of hearing ie., on 19.10.2023.
[R.S.K.,J.] [K.B.,J.]
21.09.2023 KST
Note to Registry:
- Issue order copy today (21.09.2023)
- A copy of this order shall be immediately communicated to the Director General of Police, Tamil Nadu Police Force.
- SURESH KUMAR, J.
AND
K.KUMARESH BABU, J. kst
Crl.O.P.No.17492 of 2023 and Cont.P.No.2493 of 2022
21.09.2023
