SEC letter: HC stays probe into alleged destruction of evidence

The High Court has stayed the investigation of the alleged destruction of evidence of State Election Commissioner (SEC) N. Ramesh Kumar’s letter to Union Ministry of Home Affairs (about the threat to his life) by the commission’s assistant secretary K. Samba Murthy, till the government files a counter-affidavit and posted the matter to next week.

A single-judge bench comprising Justice D. Ramesh issued the interim order during Monday’s hearing on the petitions filed by Mr. Ramesh Kumar for declaration of the CID’s interference in the functioning of the commission as illegal, and Mr. Samba Murthy’s plea for a stay on his arrest.

Government Pleader (GP) Ch. Sumon took an objection as to the maintainability of the writ petition filed by Mr. Ramesh Kumar saying he was a stranger to the prosecution as he had not been named in the FIR registered in the name of Mr. Samba Murthy.

Mr. Sumon cited Supreme Court judgements which held that third parties and strangers could not seek quashing of FIRs.

Mr. Sumon argued that the SEC could not speak about the commission’s independence in the context of his private meetings with some politicians at a hotel in Hyderabad.

With regard to Mr. Samba Murthy’s role in the episode, the GP said the forensic investigation revealed that the accused had tampered with the computer documents and the file number which he (Mr. Murthy) quoted as that of the letter sent to Union Home Secretary was in fact the file number of a representation given by an MLC.