The Madras High Court has upheld the acquittal of former DMK minister V Mullaivendhan and 10 others in a case related to alleged attack of a government official in Dharmapuri in February 2001.
Justice G K Ilanthiraiyan dismissed an appeal filed by the police challenging the acquittal order passed by a judicial magistrate court in Dharmapuri.
The judge said that except the official, no witnesses supported the case of the prosecution.
"This court has no hesitation to conclude that there is no infirmity or illegality in the order passed by the trial court and as such the impugned judgement does not warrant any interference...," he said in a recent order.
The case of the prosecution was that HR and CE Assistant Commissioner Anbumani in the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments department was called by Mullaivendhan, then a minister, to the travellers bungalow in Dharmapuri on February 19, 2001 and was allegedly compelled to cancel the auction of lease of a temple land.
As the official refused to comply with the instruction, the minister used filthy language to abuse him, it said. Later, his aides assaulted the official, the prosecution had charged.
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