HC stays proceedings against Pondy Minister Valsaraj

Chennai, Mar 12 (UNI) The Madras High Court today stayed all further proceedings against Puducherry Minister for Law, Health and Family Welfare E Valsaraj by the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (VAC) in connection with a land deal case.

Justice V Jayapal restrained the Puducherry VAC from proceeding further against the Minister, when the defamation suit filed by him, seeking a sum of Rs 20 lakh as damages for levelling false corruption charge against him came up for hearing.

Mr Valsaraj submitted that Mr V Sudhakaran, office bearer of the Mahe Cooperative Centre for IT, had made concocted and baseless allegations that he (Mr Valsaraj), as the President of the society, had committed criminal appropriation and corruption in the purchase of lands at Pallur village in Mahe.

He said Mr Sudhakaran also alleged that the Minister had colluded with other members of the society with a common intention to grab funds in the land purchase deal and committed offence, punishable under Section 403 read with 34 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC).

Dismissing the charges as baseless, the Minister said the defendant, knowing fully well that he was making false statement, levelled the charges to discredit him in the eye of public and project him as a corrupt person.

The Minister sought a direction to the defendant to pay a sum of Rs 20 lakh as damages for having defamed him by his defamatory statement. According to police, cases under six different sections of IPC were registered against Mr Valsaraj.

It may be noted that Valavil Sudhakaran, a former Congress leader from Mahe region had moved a court in Puducherry, seeking a vigilance enquiry against the minister for alleged irregularities in purchasing a land in Mahe for a B Ed college in the region.

Puducherry Chief Judge D Krishna Raj, who is also the special judge under the VAC, admitted the writ-petition and directed the Chief Vigilance Officer(CVO) to register a case, investigate and submit the report to the court before March seven.

UNI WS AJ RL ND1912