CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has set aside the order imposing Rs 1 lakh costs on an advocate who filed a PIL against six AIADMK MLAs who resigned and joined the TVK, after accepting his submission that he had agreed to withdraw the plea, but the withdrawal was not properly recorded due to a technical error.

The petitioner, advocate S Kasi Ramalingam, sought a declaration that the resignations of the six MLAs were not genuine and amounted to a betrayal of the voters' trust. He further argued that the present plea was different from the earlier case and that the court had inherent powers to issue directions where there was no law.

Earlier, the Bench dismissed the plea, observing that the PIL was nothing but a publicity litigation filed with an ulterior motive. It also directed the petitioner to pay costs of Rs 1 lakh to the Tamil Nadu Legal Services Authority.

Subsequently, S Kasi Ramalingam filed a review petition seeking the withdrawal of the Rs 1 lakh costs. The matter came up for hearing before a Bench comprising Chief Justice SA Dharmadhikari and Justice G Arul Murugan. The petitioner submitted that he had agreed to withdraw the main petition while appearing through video conference, but the withdrawal could not be properly recorded due to a technical error.

Accepting the submission, the Bench set aside only the order imposing the Rs 1 lakh costs.