PILs against transfer of SBI money quashed

Responding to three PILs — filed by social activist ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy, Satta Panchayat’s Senthil Arumugam and Dalit Pandiyan — RBI’s counsel told a bench comprising Justice K Kalyanasundaram and D Krishnakumar during a special sitting on Wednesday, that the PILs had been filed without any research and based on presumptions and surmises. 

The counsel for the Election Commission of India also took exception to the plea that election results should be held up till inquiry into the mystery of Rs 570 crore is completed. Poll process, once initiated, could not be interfered with by courts, and the only remedy available to candidates and others is filing of election petition under Section 100 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951, he said. 

He also pointed out that a few weeks ago, HDFC transferred twice the size of the sum from Coimbatore to Ahmedabad, and it cannot be argued that the money was transferred to the prime minister’s state, he said, adding that how to transfer and who had to escort the money were all matters to be dealt with by the SBI. 

The PILs besides raising the Rs.570 crore seizure also claimed that if counting was held on May 19 and the results declared then the elections to Aravakurichi and Thanjavur on May 23 would be totally influenced by the results declared, putting the electoral process to a naught. 

However, rejecting the argument that declaration of elections should await completion of polling in Aravakurichi and Thanjavur, the Election Commission counsel said the ECI alone could decide on postponing elections and declaring results. Moreover, the new Assembly in Tamil Nadu had to be constituted by May 21, he said.