Judge faces disciplinary measures after inquiry reveals abuse of judicial authority in personal dispute.
The Madras High Court has taken significant steps against Kancheepuram Principal District and Sessions Judge Pa U Chemmal, mandating disciplinary action following an inquiry that revealed he misused his judicial authority. The inquiry was prompted by allegations that Chemmal acted against his former personal security officer and a deputy superintendent of police due to personal grievances. Justice N Sathish Kumar presided over the case and instructed the court registry to submit the inquiry findings to the vigilance committee of senior judges for further action.
In a decisive move, Justice Kumar also ordered that the inquiry report be reviewed by a transfer committee with the intention of relocating the judge from Kancheepuram, asserting that his continued presence in the district was untenable. The situation originated from a dispute in Walajabad, Kancheepuram district, which revolved around a complaint regarding an allegedly stale cake sold at a bakery owned by the father-in-law of Chemmal’s former security officer, R Lokeshwaran. Notably, the customer involved in the incident was identified as a member of a Scheduled Caste.
Initially, both parties involved in the bakery dispute filed complaints against each other, but these were dismissed after they reached an amicable settlement. However, Chemmal suspected that Lokeshwaran was disseminating rumors about him, prompting him to allegedly exert pressure on law enforcement to file first information reports against Lokeshwaran and his family under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act.
Reports indicate that Chemmal went so far as to verbally threaten police officers with consequences should they fail to comply with his demands for action against Lokeshwaran. On September 4, he issued a suo motu externment order, compelling Lokeshwaran’s family to vacate Kancheepuram. This externment is a legal procedure that mandates individuals to leave a designated area for a specified duration, typically invoked in response to prior misconduct.
On September 8, Chemmal ordered the remand of Deputy Superintendent of Police M Sankar Ganesh, who was tasked with investigating the case. The judge accused Ganesh of neglecting his duties by not making the necessary arrests. This remand was executed under Section 4 of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Prevention of Atrocities Act, which addresses penalties for failure to act. However, the High Court intervened on September 9, characterizing the remand as “completely unwarranted” and subsequently quashed the externment order, stating it was inapplicable under the given circumstances.
Justice Kumar emphasized that judicial powers cannot be enforced without adhering to due process. The inquiry conducted by Registrar (Vigilance) Jacintha Martin corroborated that Chemmal had indeed pressured police to take action against Lokeshwaran’s family and had also influenced food safety officials to conduct a raid on the bakery. Upon reviewing the inquiry’s findings, Justice Kumar concluded that Chemmal had abused his judicial power, asserting that “appropriate disciplinary steps should be taken at the earliest opportunity.”
