The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Witch-hunting, says Premkumar

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Thursday, Sep 14, 2006
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Witch-hunting, says Premkumar

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has adjourned to September 19 hearing on a writ petition filed by the suspended Superintendent of Police, K. Premkumar, against a show-cause notice proposing to remove him from service.

Justice P. Jyothimani asked the Government to file its counter-affidavit.

Assailing the notice, which sought to take action against him in connection with a Madurai court order convicting him in two criminal cases, in July 2003, Mr. Premkumar said it was issued without any jurisdiction and owing to extraneous considerations.

He said the Government was indulging in "witch-hunting against those police officers who were perceived to be close to the previous Government."

"It has resulted in complete chaos and has had a cascading effect of demoralising the police force and polarising the police force into two camps. This unhealthy practice has to be deprecated by this Honourable Court... It is clear that the impugned show-cause notice is the result of malafides against the petitioner and is tainted by malice in law."

On July 11, 2003, a Madurai court found Mr. Premkumar guilty in two cases. However, invoking the provisions of the Probation of Offenders Act, 1958, the court let him off with admonition. Pointing out that there was a delay of more than three years in taking a decision on the issue, he said courts had taken the view that if a convicted person was let off on probation it would not act as a bar on or disqualification from employment. No man could be tried twice for the same offence, he said. "The facts which led to the conviction have already been examined by the Government and he has been exonerated."

Sensitive cases

Mr. Premkumar said he had handled several sensitive cases, including the Sankararaman murder case.

As soon as there was a change of government, he was removed from those cases. He said he had not been paid his salary since May 2006, though officers on compulsory wait were entitled to full salary.

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