அறிக்கையிடத்தக்கது

 

ஏறத்தாழ 864 நில அபகரிப்பு வழக்குகள் சம்பந்தப்பட்ட
சிறப்பு நீதிமன்றங்களில் இருந்து சம்பந்தப்பட்ட அதிகார வரம்புக்குட்பட்ட மாஜிஸ்திரேட்டுகளுக்கு மாற்றப்படுவது
உச்ச நீதிமன்றத்தால் ரத்து செய்யப்பட்டு ரத்து செய்யப்படுகிறது.

 

 

இந்திய உச்ச நீதிமன்றத்தில்

குற்றவியல் மேல்முறையீட்டு அதிகார வரம்பு

குற்றவியல் மேல்முறையீட்டு எண். 2022 இன் 272-274

(2022 இன் எஸ்.எல்.பி.(கிரிமினல்) எண். 1752-1754ல் இருந்து எழுகிறது

@ டி.எண். 2419/2022

பதிவாளர் ஜெனரல், சென்னை உயர் நீதிமன்ற நீதித்துறை …மேல்முறையீடு

எதிராக

காவல் கண்காணிப்பாளரால் பிரதிநிதித்துவப்படுத்தப்படும் மாநிலம்,

மத்திய குற்றப்பிரிவு, சென்னை & மற்றொன்று … பதிலளித்தவர்கள்

ஆர்டர்

1. சிறப்பு விடுப்பு மனுக்களை தாக்கல் செய்ய அனுமதி கோரி விண்ணப்பிக்கலாம். சிறப்பு விடுப்பு மனுக்களை தாக்கல் செய்வதில் ஏற்பட்ட தாமதம் மன்னிக்கப்படுகிறது.

1a. விடுப்பு வழங்கப்பட்டது.

2. Feeling aggrieved and dissatisfied with the impugned final judgment and orders dated 05.08.2019, 27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019 passed by the High Court of Judicature at Madras in Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019, by which the learned Single Judge of the High Court has directed to transfer 864 cases in which the final reports have been filed before the concerned Special Courts for Land Grabbing Cases pending in various districts and has directed the concerned Special Courts before whom the final reports are filed to return back the final reports filed by the concerned investigating officers of the respective police stations in order to enable those final reports to be filed before the concerned jurisdictional Courts, the High Court of Judicature at Madras through the Registrar General has preferred the present appeals, being in a quandry with regard to the implementation of the impugned orders though passed on the judicial side.
3. The facts leading to the present appeals in a nutshell are as under: That the State of Tamil Nadu issued G.O. (Ms) No. 423 dated

28.07.2011 creating 36 Anti Land Grabbing Special Cells in the State of

Tamil Nadu with one cell each at the State Police Headquarters, 7

Commissionerates and 28 Districts except Karur, Tiruvannamalai and Nagappattinam Districts.  That consequent upon G.O. (Ms) No. 423 dated 28.07.2011, Special Courts were constituted exclusively to deal with Land Grabbing Cases.  That the aforesaid G.O. was the subject matter of controversy before the High Court.

• By a common judgment and order dated 10.02.2015 passed in

Writ Petition No. 18872/2014 and other allied writ petitions, the High

Court has set aside G.O (Ms) No. 423 dated 28.07.2011 and G.O.(Ms) No. 451, Home (Court III) Department dated 11.08.2011.  While allowing those writ petitions, the High Court has also observed that the State Government is at liberty to enact any appropriate legislation on the lines of A.P. Land Grabbing (Prohibition) Act, 1982 or better legislations.  The common judgment and order dated 10.02.2015 passed in Writ Petition No. 18872/2014 and other allied writ petitions is the subject matter before this Court by way of Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos. 60506078 of 2015.

• That by order dated 27.02.2015, this Court, while issuing notice in the aforesaid special leave petitions, stayed the operation and implementation of the judgment and order dated 10.02.2015 passed by the High Court. Meaning thereby, pursuant to the said interim order, the aforesaid G.O. No. 423 dated 28.07.2011 and G.O. No. 451 dated

11.08.2011 are in operation and the jurisdiction of the Land Grabbing Cases is to be continued with the Special Cell/Special Courts.

• That, during the pendency of the aforesaid special leave petitions, one, S. Natarajan, original complainant in Crime No. 434/2015 pending on the file of the Special Court for Land Grabbing Cases No. II, Chennai, filed Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019 before the High Court, seeking transfer of the said case from the Special Court to the Court of CCB and CBCID, Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, Chennai. By order dated 05.08.2019, the learned Single Judge of the High Court has allowed/disposed of the said petition and has directed the concerned police officials to take back the final report from the Special Court for

Land Grabbing Cases No. II, Chennai and to file the same before the

CCB and CBCID, Metropolitan Magistrate, Egmore, Chennai.

• That thereafter, on ‘mentioning’ made by the learned Additional Public Prosecutor in the disposed of matter, being the aforesaid Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019, disposed of vide order dated 05.08.2019, a further order dated 27.08.2019 came to be passed by the learned Single Judge of the High Court directing transfer of other 82 cases pending on the files of the Special Courts to the jurisdictional Courts. That thereafter, again on a ‘special mentioning’ made by the learned Additional Public Prosecutor in the disposed of matter being Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019, the learned Single Judge by order dated 29.08.2019 has directed transfer of 782 cases pending in the Special Courts to the jurisdictional Courts.  Orders dated 05.08.2019, 27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019 are the subject matter of the present appeals.

4. We have heard the learned counsel appearing on behalf of the

High Court.  By the impugned orders, the learned Single Judge of the High Court has directed transfer of the cases/final reports filed/pending in the Special Courts exclusively to deal with the Land Grabbing Cases to the respective jurisdictional Courts.  It is to be noted that when the learned Single Judge passed orders dated 27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019, no proceedings were pending before the learned Single Judge.  The original Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019 was already disposed of by the learned Single Judge vide order dated 05.08.2019.  The learned Single

Judge had become functus officio insofar as the aforesaid matter was concerned.  From orders dated 27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019, it appears that the said orders are passed on the ‘special mentioning’ made by the learned Additional Public Prosecutor.  How such orders transferring approximately 864 cases pending in different Special Courts in different districts to the concerned jurisdictional Courts could have been passed in a disposed of matter and more particularly when none of the parties to the cases which are ordered to be transferred were parties before the High Court?  To pass such type of orders on a ‘special mentioning’ that too, in a disposed of matter is unheard of. It is required to be noted that the main Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019 was with respect to only one case, being Crime No. 434/2015 on the file of the Special Court for Land

Grabbing Cases No. II, Chennai and it was not a Public Interest Litigation (PIL).  Therefore, it is not understandable, how in a disposed of matter with respect to only one case, further orders could have been passed by the High Court transferring approximately 864 cases pending in different Special Courts in different districts, that too, on a ‘special mentioning’.  The procedure adopted by the learned Single Judge for passing orders dated 27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019 directing to transfer 864 cases from the Special Courts in different districts to the concerned jurisdictional Courts is unknown to law.  The practice of passing such orders on a ‘special mentioning’ that too, in a disposed of matter is to be deprecated.   Therefore, under the circumstances, orders dated

27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019 being wholly without jurisdiction, are unsustainable and deserve to be quashed and set aside.

5. Even otherwise on merits also, orders dated 05.08.2019,

27.08.2019 and 29.08.2019 transferring the cases/final reports from the concerned Special Courts for Land Grabbing Cases pending in different districts to the concerned jurisdictional Magistrates in different districts of the State can be said to be in the teeth of the interim order passed by this Court dated 27.02.2015 in Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos. 60506078/2015.  Once the judgment and order passed by the High Court quashing and setting aside G.O. No. 423 dated 28.07.2011 and G.O. No. 451 dated 11.08.2011 came to be stayed by this Court, the jurisdiction of the concerned Special Courts to deal with the Land Grabbing Cases continues.  From the impugned orders, it appears that the learned Single Judge of the High Court was aware of the pending proceedings before this Court and despite that the impugned orders are passed transferring the final reports/cases from the concerned Special Courts to the jurisdictional Magistrates.  Under the circumstances also, impugned orders passed by the High Court dated 05.08.2019, 27.08.2019 & 29.08.2019 passed in Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019 are unsustainable and deserve to be quashed and set aside.

6. In view of the above and for the reasons stated above, the present appeals are allowed. Impugned judgment and orders dated 05.08.2019,

27.08.2019 & 29.08.2019 passed by the learned Single Judge of the High Court of Judicature at Madras in Criminal O.P. No. 20889/2019 directing transfer of approximately 864 cases from the concerned Special Courts to the concerned jurisdictional Magistrates are hereby quashed and set aside.  However, the same shall be subject to the final outcome and the decision of this Court in the pending proceedings being Special Leave Petition (Civil) Nos. 6050-6078 of 2015.  All these appeals are accordingly allowed.

7. இந்த மேல்முறையீடுகளுடன் பிரிந்து செல்வதற்கு முன், இந்த மேல்முறையீடுகளில் தடை செய்யப்பட்ட உத்தரவுகளைப் பிறப்பித்தால் ஏற்படும் விளைவுகள் குறித்து உயர் நீதிமன்றங்கள் கவனமாகவும் விழிப்புடனும் இருக்க வேண்டும் என்பதை நாங்கள் கவனிக்கிறோம். குற்றவியல் நடைமுறைச் சட்டத்தின் 482வது பிரிவின் கீழ் உயர் நீதிமன்றத்தின் அதிகாரங்கள் பரந்ததாக இருந்தாலும், இன்னும் உள்ளார்ந்த அதிகாரத்தின் தன்மையில் இருந்தாலும், கூறப்பட்ட அதிகாரத்தை தானாக முன்வந்து பரந்த முறையில் மற்றும் அதன் கீழ் குறிப்பிடப்பட்டுள்ள வரையறைகளுக்கு அப்பால் பயன்படுத்த முடியாது. பிரிவு கூறியது. இந்த மேல்முறையீடுகளில் தடைசெய்யப்பட்ட மற்றும் ரத்துசெய்யப்பட்ட அத்தகைய உத்தரவுகளை பிறப்பிக்கும் முன் உயர் நீதிமன்றங்கள் மிகவும் கவனமாக இருக்கும் என்று நாங்கள் நம்புகிறோம் மற்றும் நம்புகிறோம்.

…………………………………………. ஜே.

[எம்ஆர் ஷா]

புது தில்லி;	…………………………………………. ஜே.
பிப்ரவரி 23, 2022.	[பி.வி. நாகரத்னா]