2009 police-advocates clash: Madras high court stays case against advocates

Chennai: The Madras high court has stayed all further proceedings pending before the Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, in a caseregistered against 32 advocates relating to the February 19, 2009 Police-Advocates clash.

Justice A.D. Jagdish Chandra granted the interim stay and ordered notice, returnable by four weeks, to the CBI on a petition filed by one of the 32 advocates, S. Mahendran, which sought to set aside the interim final report filed by the CBI and to direct the CBI to conduct a full fledged investigation in a fair manner.

Petitioner’s counsel K. Muthuramalingam submitted that pursuant to the clash between police and advocates on the premises of the Madras high court on February 19, 2009, the CBI had registered two FIRs and proceeded with the investigation. After conducting the investigation, the CBI had filed interim final report before the ACMM, Egmore against the petitioner and 31 other advocates. Similarly, the CBI had filed final report against five police constables only. Even in the interim final report, the CBI claimed that further investigation is continuing and unless a full fledged charge sheet is filed, the truth will not come out and hence the interim final report was liable to be set aside, he added.

Senior counsel S. Prabakaran, assisted by MHAA president G. Mohanakrishan, appearing for the petitioner submitted that as far as the case against the police officials were concerned, the full bench of this Court directed the CBI to proceed with the further investigation with all seriousness, having regard to the observations made by this court in mind and file an additional final report based on new

material and document. But, the investigation conducted by the CBI was tainted, biased, shabby and highly unsatisfactory.

On February 19,  2009, more than 100 lawyers sustained grievous injuries and admitted in the hospitals and lot of vehicles have been damaged by the police and this being the case, the CBI filed this impugned final report against the legal fraternity. On the other hand, the investigation against the police officials was still not yet completed and the final report was also not yet filed despite the direction of the Full bench. While so, the ACMM had issued summons to the petitioner for his appearance on February 28, 2019 for further proceedings.

A division bench of this court had given a detailed judgment and described the conduct of the police in the matter of deployment of striking force on the premises of high court and the alleged role of police in causing hurts on advocates and litigant public.

All these facts were not properly analysed by the CBI in filing the interim final report, they added.