Madras High Court dispenses with the appearance of Minister Duraimurugan, his wife before special court in Chennai

The Madras High Court on Wednesday dispensed with the appearance of Water Resources Minister Duraimurugan and his wife D. Shanthakumari before a special court for Prevention of Corruption Act cases in Chennai in connection with a 2011 disproproportionate assets case booked against them.

Justice N. Sathish Kumar passed the interim order pursuant to a petition filed jointly by both the accused challenging the refusal of the special court in Chennai to transfer the trial in the corruption case to a special court for MP/MLA cases in Vellore since the prime accused was a sitting MLA and also a Minister.

After hearing the arguments advanced by senior counsel P. Wilson in support of the transfer plea, the judge directed Additional Public Prosecutor K.M.D. Muhilan to ensure that the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti Corruption files a detailed counter affidavit by October 22 explaining why the case should not be transferred.

The DVAC had booked the couple in 2011 on the charge of having amassed ₹1.15 crore disproportionate to their known sources of income between April 1, 2006 and March 31, 2009 when the prime accused had served as Minister for Public Works Department, Prisons and Law in former Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi’s Cabinet.

According to the prosecution, the couple was in possession of pecuniary resources and properties worth ₹77.46 lakh during the beginning of the check period on April 1, 2006 but their wealth had multiplied to ₹2.77 crore during the end of the check period on March 31, 2009 as per Income Tax returns and other documents.

After taking into account the revenue earned by them during the check period and the expenses incurred, the prosecuting agency arrived at a figure of ₹1.15 crore to be disproportionate to their known sources of income. However, on January 31, 2017, the Vellore Chief Judicial Magistrate discharged the couple from the case.

Immediately, the DVAC filed a criminal revision petition before the High Court and it remained pending for more than eight years until Justice P. Velmurugan on April 24, 2025 reversed the discharge order and directed the couple to face trial. In the meantime, the case had got transferred from Vellore to Chennai.

Hence, the Minister and his wife filed a memo before the special court in Chennai to transfer the matter back to Vellore. The special court rejected the memo on August 21, 2025 and issued an arrest warrant against the Minister, Mr. Wilson said and sought to dispense with the appearance of the couple before the special court.