Friday 13 September 2002

Madras High Court Shows Leniency – Miscarriage of Justice

The trustees categorically maintained in all their correspondence and pleadings filed in O.S. No.215/2001 that only after conducting an “in camera enquiry” Hemlata was sought to be expelled from the Ashram. The trustees however have failed to produce any documentary evidence of this alleged enquiry proceedings till date.

In fact, in all their correspondences and pleadings relating to and filed in O.S. No.215/2001, the trustees have subtly and cunningly altered their concocted story to make it more and more plausible. Only hearsay and alleged confessions have been taken recourse to for building up their defamatory concoction.

To cover up their lapse the trustees decided to illegally constitute a second enquiry by appointing one Mr. K. Natarajan, retired district Judge, with Vijay Poddar of Sri Aurobindo Society as the presenting officer. I was issued with notice for appearance and I refused to participate since O.S. No.215/2001 was pending and since the trustees had vehemently claimed that an “in camera enquiry” had been conducted. I challenged the constitution of this enquiry in O.S. No.215/2001 through an interim petition in I.A. No.2672/2001 and the Hon’ble Court directed the trustees to continue with the enquiry proceedings.

But the self-proclaimed incarnates of Sri Aurobindo and the Mother, namely the trustees, are a law unto themselves, who obey and give a damn for nobody but themselves and their self-interests. So Mr. Natarajan and Mr. Vijay Poddar were told to proceed with the enquiry. It was completed and even a report finding me guilty, so I am told, had been produced. But I have not been furnished with a copy of this enquiry’s report.

Now the trustees did not like to be told that they cannot conduct a second enquiry parallel. So they approached the Hon’ble Madras High Court. Mr. Justice R. Balasubramanium, entertained C.R.P. No.787/2002, filed by the trustees. Mr. Sri Ram Panchu (senior lawyer) and Mr. C.A. Diwakar, trustees’ lawyers misrepresented before the High Court that the trustees had only conducted an “informal enquiry” and being a spiritual institution and ignorant about the ways of the world, the trustees inadvertently made a mistake. Wrongly gaining the sympathy of the High Court and also through deliberate misrepresentation, the court showed leniency and allowed them to conduct an enquiry (third on trustees count) by appointing Mr. N.P.K. Menon, a retired District Judge. The trustees were also directed to pay an initial sum of Rs.15,000/- to Mr. Menon. How much will really be paid is anyone’s guess…


The miscarriage of justice occurred when Justice Balasubramaniam summarily terminated my suit at Pondicherry, in O.S. No.215/2001, without even going into the merits of the case and conducting a trial.