Karnataka HC says Murugha mutt seer's plea to sign cheques from jail lacks clarity
Bengaluru, Sep 29: The High Court of Karnataka on Thursday said there was lack of clarity in the request of chief pontiff of Murugha Math Shivamurthy Murugha Sharanaru to sign around 200 bank cheques from the prison where he is lodged in connection with a sexual abuse case.
The seer, now in judicial custody, was arrested on September 1 under the POCSO Act for allegedly sexually abusing two minor girls studying in a school belonging to the math.
Justice M Nagaprasanna who heard the plea of the chief pontiff directed his advocate on Wednesday to file the details of the cheques, and it was filed.
Today, the court studied the details and found the cheques payable to self.
The court said all the cheques had the payable details mentioned as Self RTGS" (real time gross settlement). Even cheques of huge amounts of Rs 14 lakh and Rs 30 lakh were self-addressed.
The court said there was no clarity in the request as the Seer wanted to sign the cheques to pay the salaries of 3,000 employees of the math and the 150 educational institutions run by it, but the plea, the court found, was odd as all the cheques were to "pay self."
State public prosecutor 1 Kiran Javali told the court that prima facie the submissions made by the accused did not seem bona fide. He requested the court to transfer the plea to the Sessions Court in Chitradurga for disposal on merit.
The High Court said that it was improper to request for self-addressed cheques to be signed by the accused in prison.
It said it had consented to hear the request only to make sure that the math employees did not suffer. The court said it would consider transferring the request to the Sessions Court.
The case was adjourned to Friday.
Earlier, a similar request was made by the seer before the Second Additional Sessions Judge BK Komala in Chitradurga where the POCSO case is pending. The judge has rejected the request. So, the seer approached the High Court with the same plea.
The chief pontiff has also been charged under the SC/ST Atrocities Prevention Act.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
