Madras High Court seeks explanation on completing gutkha scam trial in 3 months

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has sought an explanation from the Special Court on how the trial in the alleged gutkha scam case could be completed within three months, after the CBI informed it that more than 250 witnesses were yet to be examined.

The case stems from a CBI investigation into the gutkha scam, in which 26 persons, including former State ministers C Vijayabaskar and PV Ramana, former Chennai Police Commissioner S George and former DGP TK Rajendran, have been named as suspects.

The case is pending before the Special Court for trial of cases against MPs and MLAs on the premises of the Chennai District Collectorate. During the proceedings, George filed an application before the Special Court seeking the removal of several prosecution witnesses from the CBI’s witness list, contending that they had not given statements to the investigating officer. Alternatively, he sought copies of the statements of all prosecution witnesses. After the Special Court dismissed his application, he challenged the order before the High Court.

On July 4, 2026, the High Court directed the Special Court to proceed with the trial and complete it within 12 weeks. Subsequently, the Special Court wrote to the High Court seeking a three-month extension to complete the proceedings.

When the matter came up before Justice V Lakshminarayanan, senior counsel K Srinivasan, appearing for the CBI, submitted that the agency proposed to examine more than 250 witnesses and produce around 498 documents. He also pointed out that the case was still at the pre-charge stage.

Taking note of the submissions, the judge directed the Special Judge to submit a report explaining how the trial, involving several accused and a large volume of documentary evidence, could be completed within three months.

The court adjourned the matter to November 6.