SC questions Madras High Court over Karur stampede case

The Supreme Court has sought a reply from the Madras High Court on the rules being followed in listing and hearing cases, observing that “something wrong” appears to be happening there, NDTV reported. A bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi made the observation while hearing the Karur stampede case, taking note of a report submitted by the Registrar General of the Madras High Court.The notice also made the Registrar of the Madras High Court a party to the case linked to Actor Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party. Justice Maheshwari remarked, “Something wrong is happening in the High Court. We need to see…” the report says that this remark came as the top court flagged “impropriety” in the Chennai bench’s earlier order.The controversy arose while the Supreme Court was hearing TVK’s petition challenging the Madras High Court’s direction for a Special Investigation Team (SIT) probe. NDTV’s report noted that the top court said the petition was only seeking guidelines for holding roadshows, and the SIT order conflicted with a prior Madurai bench order refusing a CBI probe.The Karur stampede, which occurred during a TVK rally on September 27, left 41 dead and over 60 injured.The Tamil Nadu government has filed an application seeking the removal of the Supreme Court’s stay on a single-member commission led by retired Madras High Court judge Aruna Jagadeesan, arguing that allowing the commission to function would prevent such tragedies in the future. NDTV reported that Senior Advocate NK Kaul, representing the state, said a counter affidavit has been filed and the matter needs to be heard.The Supreme Court, however, said it will first examine how cases are being handled in the Madras High Court before deciding on the commission’s functioning.



Source link