The eagerness of the Vellore Municipal Corporation to show servility to the AIADMK general secretary J Jayalalithaa has landed it in trouble. The Madras High Court on Tuesday asked P Karthiyayini the Mayor of the Corporation to tender a public apology for passing a resolution against the Karnataka Special Court Judge John Michale D’Cunha for sentencing AIADMK leader Jayalalithaa in the disproportionate wealth case. The two-judge Bench also directed the Mayor to publicise the regret letter through the media.
Judge D’Cunha on September 27, 2014 convicted and sentenced Jayalalithaa to four years imprisonment and a fine of Rs 100 crore for amassing wealth to the tune of Rs 66 crore which was disproportionate to her known sources of income. Following the conviction, Jayalallithaa ceased to be the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and she lost her membership of the legislative Assembly.
There were widespread riots and agitations in Tamil Nadu following the conviction of the AIADMK chief. The Vellore Municipal Corporation in its meeting held on September 30 condemned and ridiculed Judge D’Cunha for his verdict. RS Bharati, one of the second rung leaders of the DMK filed a petition in the Madras High Court challenging the action of the Vellore Municipal Corporation and the Mayor in passing such a resolution against the judiciary.
Chief Justice SK Kaul and Justice Satyanarayana observed that the resolution read out by the Mayor was offensive and derogatory to the judiciary and more specific to the Judge concerned. “The regret, if any, has to be to the Judge whom she has scandalised and she has to file appropriate affidavit if she truly has felt sorry for what she has done. She has to publicise the regret before we consider issuing notice of criminal contempt,” said the Judges.